The Boy who Lived
by Jerle Shannara
Summary: When the Boy who Lived comes to live with the Charmed Ones, he may be the best hope for saving the future. But first they must stop a powerful new foe.
1. The Boy who Lived

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Author's Note

Here's another in a somewhat long string of Charmed/Harry Potter crossovers. It just might include a romantic relationship between Harry and one of our favorite sisters (he's old enough in this story so don't worry), but that's not entirely certain. Hope ya like it!

Chapter 1: The Boy who Lived

The two men wore identical white suits. Both appeared to be of early middle age judging by their hairlines. They also had quite dispassionate faces, though not without a kind of cold arrogance about them. Harry Potter gazed indifferently at them.

"You're too unpredictable to be allowed to exist." One of them said. "Your latest performance has already exposed magic to this entire neighborhood. We can't risk such things happening again."

"If there's one consolation," the second man remarked, "it's that you won't be depressed anymore."

"If you're going to kill me then get it over with." Harry muttered. The two men exchanged startled looks.

"Most of our clients resist." One remarked. "It's as though he wants us to erase him."

"Whether he wants it or not isn't the issue." The one who was seemingly the leader snapped. "We were ordered to remove Harry Potter! He does not forgive failure easily."

"Who the hell are you anyway?" Harry asked.

"We are known as the Cleaners." Replied the leader. "When magic is exposed to ordinary mortals, it's our job to cover it up. Most of the time we can just erase the effects of the magic itself, but there are occasionally times where that isn't enough and we're forced to erase the one who performed the magic. Since you can't guarantee that you won't have another outburst like that last one, we have no choice but to eliminate you."

"Like I said," remarked the second Cleaner, "at least you won't have all these bothersome emotions to deal with."

Harry didn't know or care what happened to him at this point. He'd lost Sirius, the only man who had ever come even close to being a father figure in Harry's life---except of course for Arthur Weasley, but it wasn't the same. Before that, Cedric Diggory had died just when he and Harry could have become friends. There was nothing left in this world for him, so maybe these Cleaners would be doing him a favor. They each extended a hand. Then a voice rang out from the doorway of Harry's bedroom, a voice Harry had never expected to hear again.

"Ultima Protego!" Harry looked up in shock at hearing the voice. He found himself surrounded by a golden barrier that he could see through. He blinked several times to try to dispel the illusion before him, but it was not his imagination. Cedric Diggory stood in the doorway, and his gray eyes glinted with fury.

"What is this?" demanded the lead Cleaner. "You can't interfere!"

"I can when you're on the verge of upsetting the balance!" Cedric snapped. "You know your purpose, now fulfill it!"

"We will as soon as you lower your shield." Said the Cleaner coldly.

"This boy is my charge!" Cedric snapped. "It's my responsibility to see to his training."

"Then perhaps you should have been with your charge a little while ago?" suggested the first Cleaner even more coldly.

"He was only just assigned to me." Cedric said. "Erase his latest magic and I'll see to it that he learns to harness his powers. That's final!" The Cleaners exchanged a long look. Then they nodded.

Very well." The leader said to Cedric. He turned to Harry. "This is not over between us. We will do what we set out to do." They raised their hands again and vanished. Harry sat gaping at Cedric.

"But you're---" Harry began.

"There's no time to explain." Cedric said. "There will be in a bit, but right now we're leaving."

"But Dumbledore said I have to stay here." Harry said.

"Dumbledore's been temporarily relieved of that responsibility. The Elders finally figured out where he'd sent you. Let's just say they weren't happy about it at all. Let's get your stuff together and get you out of here."

"You most certainly will not!" roared a voice.

"Those Cleaners would sure be nice about now." Cedric remarked. "We could get rid of that overgrown pig." He turned to Uncle Vernon and said, "I'll be taking Harry off your hands, so if you'll just get the hell out of our way, we can be off without any---unpleasantness."

"Now see here---" Vernon began.

"Trunk!" Cedric called. Harry's trunk flew into his arms, where it promptly became small enough to fit into his pocket. He did the same to Harry's empty owl cage. He even, Harry noticed, magicked up all the loose parchments, books and things that Harry had been using to study.

"There we are." Cedric said brightly. "Now we can get out of here. We'll be Orbing to your new home, so you'll probably be a lot more comfortable than you were---" he suddenly stiffened as though he were in pain. He looked at Harry for a long moment, then quite suddenly drew back and slugged Uncle Vernon with unbelievable force.

"You son of a bitch!" he swore. Pausing to control himself he continued, "You're just lucky I've got more important things to do right now. I don't stand by when Muggles abuse my charges." With that he took hold of Harry and was gone before Vernon could act to prevent it.

"He's real." Leo said. "JKR doesn't realize it of course, but Harry Potter is real. Moreover, he's coming to stay here until further notice." Phoebe, Piper and Paige all gaped at him.

"We've got two kids already." Piper said. "Wyatt's quite enough of a handful all by himself, and I'm quite sure Chris will go through his own phase. We don't need another little kid running around."

"He's not a kid." Leo replied. "He's in his twenties, I'm not sure how old exactly, probably a little younger than Page. The reason he's coming to stay here is because he's part of the reason Wyatt turned evil in Chris' time. Harry wasn't there in that time because his uncle killed him. Now we have a chance to set that right. Harry's here to help us protect Wyatt. Besides, we Wiccans don't stand by when an ordinary mortal persecutes our fellows." His lips twitched as though he was trying not to laugh as he continued. "Something else might also happen, but I'm not about to spoil that. Suffice it to say you've got a new charge."

"Why us specifically?" Phoebe asked. "I mean apart from Wyatt---"

"The Cleaners have been acting odd lately." Leo admitted. "They went after Harry earlier today. He had a fight with his aunt and uncle. Some blows were exchanged and there was a little magic performed. The Cleaners are under strict orders not to erase Harry whatever he does. His power will be crucial in preserving the cosmic balance. The Cleaners know that, but for some reason they still went after him. I want him someplace where he can be protected in case they show up again. We're just lucky his Whitelighter got there to straighten things out."

A little while later, a tall, handsome young man Orbed into the kitchen. He was carrying a skinny young boy in his arms. This boy had green eyes, untidy black hair and a lightning scar on his forehead.

"Oh my god." Breathed Phoebe, as the full weight of Harry's emotions hit her Empathic sense.

"Put him in the living room." Said Piper, her tone uncharacteristically gentle. She too could sense the pain emanating from the young man.

"You can go let the Elders know that Harry's safe." Leo said.

"No," said Harry's companion. "I think I'll stay with him. He's my responsibility now."

"All right." Leo said. "Relax a bit though, Ced. He's not a baby. Right now he needs friends, not mothers---except maybe Piper." Grinning briefly, Leo Orbed out.

When Harry came to, he was lying on an old but comfortable couch. Pillows were wedged beneath his back and neck, making him feel almost as if he were in an ambulance, strapped to one of those boards they put you on to keep you from moving around too much. There was a sharp pain in his rib cage that he hadn't noticed before. Cedric was sitting in a chair nearby.

"Where am I?" Harry asked.

"America." Cedric said. "I suppose you'll be wanting answers now?"

"I'll want them sooner or later, but right now I think I broke something."

"That'd be your uncle's work." Cedric said. "He broke a few ribs when he was beating the hell out of you last time. Don't worry though, that'll just take a second to clear up." He leaned close to Harry. "Don't move." He said. He placed both hands on Harry's rib cage. A strange but soothing warmth seemed to spread through him. A moment later Harry felt refreshed.

"All done." Cedric said. "Now it's time to eat." Harry was about to say, "I'm not hungry," but even as the thought entered his mind he knew it was a lie. He was ravenous.

"What's a Whitelighter?" Harry asked a few minutes later as he worked his way through a large plate of eggs, bacon and French toast.

"Whitelighters are sort of like the guardian angels of witches and wizards." Cedric explained. "I've been in training ever since I died. You're my first charge and probably my most important. I'd have come for you sooner, but Dumbledore was never very keen on discussing where you went during the summer. It took the Elders twenty-some years to learn where you were. It was only because of my ability to sense when a charge is suffering that I managed to pinpoint you. Then of course there was that business with the Cleaners."

"What exactly are they?" Harry asked.

"They're basically the janitors of the magical world. They clean up after us when our carelessness exposes magic. British wizards have drifted so far away from the true nature of magic that most of the Elders don't even bother. You were a special case because your destiny is tied in with these three young ladies."

"Could I ask you something?" Harry asked.

"You just did," Cedric said, "but I suppose I could let you ask me something else."

"Did Sirius become a Whitelighter?"

"No," Cedric said, "he didn't. He could have though. In fact, he was offered the chance, but he declined. Don't worry though, there are ways you can talk to him. You'll learn all that eventually. Now though, let's focus on getting you settled in."

A few hours later, Harry had a chance to be formally introduced to his new guardians. Piper Halliwell, the eldest of the three sisters, was the one who had prepared Harry's breakfast. She was in her early thirties with long dark hair and brown eyes. Next in line was Phoebe. Phoebe was in her late twenties or early thirties. She too had dark hair and dark eyes, but her hair wasn't as long as Piper's. The youngest was Paige Matthews, who was actually Phoebe and Piper's half-sister. She had hazel eyes that sparkled with merriment and mischief. Harry could tell he was going to like her most out of all three of them.

Later, Harry was introduced to Piper's two sons. The older one, Wyatt, was about two years old. He was at that age where he was just learning to talk. Harry liked the boy. Wyatt's brother Chris couldn't have been more than a few months old, so Piper was a bit leery about letting Harry hold him at first. This uneasiness was soon banished when she saw how well Wyatt seemed to get along with Harry. At one point, Harry even called his owl Hedwig over to meet the two children. Admittedly, he did this with a slight feeling of unease, but Hedwig didn't seem to mind being petted by a pair of young boys, particularly in view of the fact that, unlike most boys their age, these two seemed already to understand that this creature could hurt them if she felt threatened. Though they both did at one point rub their faces against Hedwig's soft feathers as though they were fur, she merely hooted softly but made no other reaction.

"That's amazing." Phoebe remarked. "If anybody else tried that they'd probably wind up without a face."

"What's going on?" asked a mild voice. A young man had Orbed into the living room. He saw what Wyatt and Chris were doing, started to run over and pull them away, but then saw how well Hedwig was taking the situation and began to laugh.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Piper remarked.

"She must really trust them if she's that patient." The newcomer commented.

"She's usually like this." Harry replied. "She's usually pretty patient. Granted I'm a little surprised she's this way around younger kids, but the fact that she is is a good sign." The man, who had to be the boys' father judging by the resemblance between them, came over to shake Harry's hand.

"I'm Leo Wyatt." He said. "You won't remember me because you were unconscious, so I thought I'd get the introduction out of the way. You'll probably be staying here for a while." Harry grinned. He could already tell he was going to like his new home.


	2. Unexpected Visitors

The Boy who Lived

Chapter 2: Unexpected Visitors and a Shocking Truth

Piper Halliwell sat at the kitchen table and sipped coffee. She'd been up very early that morning making cinnamon rolls, but now they were in the oven, becoming delightfully large. She didn't make them often because they took such a long time to make, so when she did she made sure there were plenty for everyone to have a decent share. There were rather more than you would expect three or even four people to be able to finish off, but they always managed to. Piper had been considering making a batch of cinnamon rolls for a while now, but the sight of Harry Potter's skinny frame had made up her mind. His relatives had horribly mistreated him and Piper was determined to make up for that as much as she could. She was amazed he hadn't turned to crime as many abused and neglected children often did. A thought struck her then and she went and grabbed the tea kettle. She filled it with water and set it on the stove to boil. She didn't know why, but she had a feeling Harry would be coming downstairs soon, and she thought he might enjoy a cup of cocoa. It did go rather well with cinnamon rolls, and the ones in the oven were about done. Then she had another pan all ready to go in.

Piper's prediction that Harry would be the first after herself to come downstairs turned out to be quite accurate. He was still stretching and yawning as he entered the kitchen, no doubt drawn by the delicious smell of baking.

"Morning," he greeted.

"You too." Piper replied. "Sleep all right?"

"Yeah." Harry replied. "Wyatt came in a little while ago. I think he wanted to see Hedwig again."

"Did he bother you?" Piper asked, concerned.

"No." said Harry truthfully. "He seems like a good kid."

"Wait till you get to know him." Piper said. "He's a handful."

"You mean the Orbing?" Harry asked. "I got to watch a little bit of that last night. It took Leo half an hour to get him to come down from the ceiling so he could go to bed."

"You don't know the half of it." Piper laughed. "I guess it comes from being a child and being magical at the same time."

"I could tell you all kinds of stories about my magical mishaps as a kid." Harry grinned. "It made my aunt and uncle furious. It got to be one of my favorite pastimes at least until they found out I wasn't supposed to use magic outside of school."

"Why were you?" Piper asked.

"I didn't know I was doing it." Harry replied. "I mean I realized I'd done something, but I didn't realize that what I was doing was magic. I also used to pretend to do magic just to scare my cousin. That got old fast though." They were interrupted by a shrill whistling from the kettle. Piper got up.

"Care for some cocoa?" she asked.

"Sure." Harry replied. "That is---if you don't mind." He drew in a breath, savoring the delicious odor of baking. "Are those cinnamon rolls?"

"Yes," Piper answered, "want one? I think they're ready to come out."

"That sounds good." Harry replied. "I didn't get those very often, even when I stayed at my friend Ron's house. His mum cooks these huge meals, but then again she had seven kids. She doesn't make cinnamon rolls very often because they take so long to make."

"I don't either." Piper replied. "I'd been thinking about it for a while though, and seeing you yesterday made up my mind. Tell me, did those relatives of yours feed you?"

"Not as much as I would have liked," Harry replied,"but they did. Then my cousin Dudley went on a diet and my aunt decided that everyone in the family had to eat the same way. My uncle was furious, which is nothing compared to how Dudley reacted. He got caught smuggling doughnuts into his room and chucked his Play Station out of the window." Piper had a mental picture of an incredibly large boy throwing a temper tantrum.

A few minutes later, Harry had his cocoa and cinnamon roll. He took a moment to take in the sight of the large roll, dripping with butter and that cinnamon icing that was oh so delicious. Then, trying not to rush, he began to devour it. He found that the flavors of the hot chocolate and cinnamon roll blended quite nicely on his tongue.

"You don't happen to be a chef by any chance?" he asked at one point.

"I own a nightclub." Piper replied. "Before that I was a chef at a place called Quake, so in answer to your question, yeah I'm a chef."

A little while later, Paige and Phoebe entered the kitchen, also drawn by the appetizing aroma of fresh cinnamon rolls. They each took one and sat down at the table.

"I wondered when you'd be coming down." Piper remarked. "Harry beat you by about an hour." Harry was surprised. Had it really been an hour? He must have lost track of time, not that he was in a hurry or anything.

"The smell of those cinnamon rolls must have drawn him to you." Phoebe agreed.

"Did you check on the boys?" Piper asked.

"They're fine." Leo's voice said from the doorway. He had Chris in his arms. Wyatt ran past him to his mother, who scooped him up into her lap.

"Wyatt was looking at your owl." Leo said to Harry. "I was worried he'd try to open the cage with his magic, but he just sat there and watched her sleep."

"I suppose I shouldn't have left him in there alone." Harry admitted.

"Normally I'd agree," Leo said, "but he already seems to understand that it you wouldn't want him messing around with your stuff. It's almost as if he knew you from somewhere."

"Either that or he senses who you are and why you're here." Piper suggested. "Even if you don't stay right there with him, I'd make sure to check on him very often, and that's not just for his own safety. He's gotten us into trouble on occasion."

"Let's see," Paige said dryly, "I seem to remember he pulled a dragon out of a TV show and set it loose on San Francisco. The Cleaners weren't too happy with that."

"I'll keep that in mind." Harry said.

A few hours later, Piper went to the grocery store. She asked Harry to look after the boys, which he agreed to do.

"If a demon attacks while I'm gone, deal with it however you want. Leo's told me about your adventures so I'm not too worried."

"Is that likely?" Harry asked.

"You never know." Piper said. "Like I said though, I'm not too worried. Just be careful if anything does happen."

Harry brought Hedwig's cage down from his room so that Chris and Wyatt could watch her sleep. Harry half expected one of them to try to open the cage, but that didn't happen. They did examine the catch, but neither of them seemed inclined to mess with it. Hedwig bore the boys' scrutiny very well. Indeed, she didn't even wake up. Now that Piper had mentioned it, Harry realized that he did feel a kind of connection between himself and Wyatt, and it was because of this connection that Wyatt was so well behaved. It might also have been indirectly linked to Chris' behavior, as though Wyatt had silently communicated to his brother that Harry was a nice guy and should therefore be kept happy. Then again, Wyatt seemed to feel safe around Harry, and maybe he thought that if he was good, Harry would continue to keep him safe. Harry didn't know what was behind his peculiar ability to bond with these boys, but he really didn't care. The fact of the matter was that he enjoyed it.

"Birdie." Wyatt said, pointing at Hedwig.

"Yeah." Harry agreed. "I think she likes you, so you want to be nice to her."

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang. Harry admonished the boys to be good and went to have a look. There was a very handsome man standing on the front stoop. He appeared to be in his early to mid thirties, probably of African American descent judging by his skin. Harry looked him over carefully, noticed his police badge and opened the door cautiously. Just because one wore the badge didn't always mean one was the real thing

"Who are you?" the man asked in some confusion. Then his eyes widened. "No way." He breathed. "It's impossible. He's not real."

"As far as I know I am." Harry replied. The man seemed genuinely taken aback. Evidently though, he'd had experience with magic, because he collected himself quickly.

"All right, so where's Chris?" the man demanded. "I've got a warrant for---"

"He's in the living room." Harry replied. "When did it become standard practice to arrest babies?" The man seemed to stiffen in sudden anger. Then he composed himself again. He motioned for Harry to step aside, which Harry did only reluctantly. Once he was inside however, the man's manner changed. He seemed relieved.

"Look," he said,"is Piper around?"

"She went to the store." Harry replied. "Her sisters went off somewhere, to work I think. It's just me and the kids."

"Look---Harry---that's your name, right?"

"Yeah," Harry replied, "Harry Potter. What's yours?"

"My name's Darryl Morris." The man replied. "I'm a cop, although you probably noticed that."

"Why are you trying to arrest an innocent child?" Harry asked. Darryl seemed to debate with himself for a moment, then he began to explain. Apparently, Chris had come back in time from a future in which Wyatt had been evil. His goal in coming back had been to save Wyatt and therefore save the future. Unfortunately, while he was here, he'd gotten into trouble with the law. This happened at a time when Darryl had just recovered from the biggest scare of his life. He'd reacted badly to it as many people do, taking his anger out on Piper and her sisters, refusing even to speak to them.

"I found out that they were witches a few years ago and I'd covered for them ever since then. During one of those little operations I almost got killed. That really changed my views on magic. Unfortunately I acted like a jerk. I'd hoped I could catch the girls at home so we could try and work it all out."

"Piper shouldn't be too long." Harry said. A thought struck him. "I think what your problem is is that you still want to help them, but you're too afraid. Even if you don't get killed, your job could be in danger." Darryl's eyes widened.

"How did you know?" he asked in a not quite steady voice.

"I'm not sure." Harry admitted. "Lately I've been able to sense emotions from people. It's almost like I can read their thoughts in a general sort of way."

"An Empath." Darryl replied."I've heard of that. Well, I suppose there's no point in trying to deny it, because you're right. I have to protect my family, and to do that I have to keep my job. I might not be so afraid if those beings hadn't let me remember what happened, but they did."

"The Cleaners?" Harry asked.

"You know them?" Darryl asked.

"They came after me yesterday, before I came here."

"Well," Darryl said, "I'll put it this way. If you can find some way to make Detective Sheridan forget that she's been watching me for a while, I'll consider covering for you and the girls. Until then I can't risk it."

"What would you be prepared to pay in exchange for our help?" asked a voice. Harry whirled around. So did Darryl.

"You!" Harry cried.

"There's no need for that." Said the lead Cleaner mildly. "We came to offer our apologies for the little misunderstanding we had yesterday. It seems we were being cleverly manipulated."

"An old friend of yours wanted you out of the way." The second Cleaner agreed.

"Your emotions were what eventually broke his hold over us, though not without a little help from your friend Miss Granger. Your seeming lack of interest in what happened to you was quite unnerving. The moment we left, we were practically abducted by your friend Hermione Granger, who---I believe the phrase is---told us off?"

"It's probablyLucius Malfoy." Harry said. "He's been after me ever since I vanquished his master."

"We'll have a little chat with Mr. Malfoy soon enough." The lead Cleaner replied. "Now, let's discuss how you'll pay us for our help in winning Inspector Morris' support again."

"What do you want?" Harry asked.

"Nothing more than you can afford." The first Cleaner replied. "Actually, my partner and I would rather like a few of those excellent looking cinnamon rolls."

"Sure." Harry said. "Piper did say that if anyone stopped by who wasn't a demon, they could help themselves."

"Very well then." The second Cleaner replied. They walked into the kitchen, returning a moment later with cinnamon rolls and hot coffee.

"We don't need to eat," the leader replied, "but one does enjoy an occasional snack."

"Are you sure you won't be breaking the rules?" Darryl asked.

"If your covering for the Charmed Ones will work towards making our job easier, then it won't matter. If it will help keep magic from being exposed on a regular basis, the Tribunal shouldn't have any objections." the lead Ccleaner explained.

"We were shall we say a bit put out with the Halliwells for interfering in our business last time." the second Cleaner remarked. "That was why we allowed Lieutenant Morris to remember what almost happened to him."

"I understand humans do that sort of thing to one another all the time." remarked the leader. "We, on the other hand, aren't supposed to resort to that. To say that the Tribunal was displeased would be something of an understatement."

"Then of course there was that unpleasant business yesterday." remarked his partner. "Even as the Halliwells aren't supposed to use their power for personal gain, neither are we. Our handling of Lieutenant Morris wasn't exactly being neutral."

A few minutes later, the Cleaners had finished their snack and put their dirty dishes in the sink.

"We'll be off now." The leader said.

"What about---" Harry began.

"It's probably done." Darryl said. "They probably took care of it while they were eating. Magic doesn't work like anything we're used to. Even yours isn't quite the same."

"Indeed." Agreed the leader. "Detective Sheridan has no memory of the reasons for her suspicions of you. As long as you're careful, she shouldn't get any inkling."

"Thanks." Harry replied.

"By the way," the leader said, "if you should ever need us, don't hesitate to summon us."

"Just ask for Beavis and Butthead." Said the second Cleaner. The first elbowed him sharply in the ribs.

"Actually," he said, "the names we use when we have to interact with Mortals are Ned and Ted." "I'm Ned, he's Ted." With those words, the Cleaners vanished.

"Ned and Ted, huh?" Harry remarked.

"Sounds like some sort of comic strip." Darryl agreed. "I think I'll go grab one of those cinnamon rolls myself." He removed Wyatt from his lap and set him down. Wyatt looked a little disappointed but didn't cry.

"So how'd you come to be here?" Darryl asked. Harry told him the story as quickly as he could.

"You're better off here." Darryl agreed. "How do you like the girls?"

"They're great." Harry said. "I came downstairs at about six this morning and Piper was making cinnamon rolls."

"Have you met Leo yet?" Darryl asked.

"Yeah." Harry replied. "I think Chris and Wyatt are lucky to have him for a dad."

"Wyatt's named after Leo." Darryl said. "That's his last name."

"Wyatt's been a lot more well-behaved than what I expected from Piper's warnings." Harry remarked. " The only time he didn't behave right away was when he decided not to go to bed last night and Orbed up to the ceiling."

"He's a handful." Darryl said. "Say, is that an owl in there?" He indicated Hedwig's cage.

"Yeah." Harry said. "Wizards in England use them as messengers. They deliver our mail in exchange for food and treats. That's Hedwig."

"She's a beauty." Darryl observed. "I hope she doesn't mind being in that cage though. I'd hate to be on her bad side. Those claws look like they'd really hurt."

"They do." Harry agreed. "I can say that from personal experience. Most of the time she's actually pretty friendly, but once in a while---" He left it hanging.

"And how does she take being in that cage?" Darryl asked.

"She's fine with it as long as she can get out and stretch her wings when she wants to." Harry replied. Harry replied. "My uncle used to lock her in there. It drove her crazy."

"I can imagine." Darryl seemed startled. "I see the boys like her. Have they tried to open that?"

"No." Harry replied. "They've been really good about that."

At that moment Piper came home. She put the groceries away and came into the living room. She saw Darryl right away and seemed to tense, almost as though waiting for an imagined blow.

"Look," Darryl said, "I came by so we could try and work out our little---problem. Harry here helped me see what the problem was."

"I understand you were shaken up by what happened," Piper said, "but did you have to be such a jerk?"

"I thought I did at the time." Darryl admitted. "That's not what I was about to say though. Harry and I had a little chat with the Cleaners while you were gone. I don't want to lose the three of you as friends. I'll help you out however I can. We'll just have to be more careful."

"Oh?" Piper asked.

"The Cleaners have modified Inspector Sheridan's memoryy."

"They made her forget wh she was investigating you." Piper made it a statement of fact.

"Yeah." Darryl replied. "Of course she's not too fond of me as it is, so she'd love an excuse to get me fired. That's why we'll have to be more careful. She knows she can't just get someone fired because she doesn't care for them, so as long as we don't give her an excuse---" He left it hanging.

"I wasn't going to ask you to cover for us again." Piper replied. "We just used to be friends. That's all I really cared about. You and Sheila have been almost like family to us."

"Well---I---" Darryl seemed genuinely startled. "I guess there's nothing wrong with that." He said finally. "By the way, those cinnamon rolls are great. I snuck one of them a little while ago."

"I hoped you might, not that I expected you to drop by." Piper smiled at Harry. "So you and Darryl have been having a little chat?"

"Yeah." Said Harry. "I was a little surprised when he first showed up though. He was asking about Chris."

"That was mostly in case anyone was listening." Darryl said. "Where is he, by the way?" Piper sighed.

"He died." She said. "Gideon killed him."

"Who's this Gideon?" Darryl asked. "I don't think you ever mentioned him. Is he some sort of demon?"

"he was one of the Elders." Piper replied, an edge coming into her voice. "Some of them decided Wyatt was too powerful to be allowed to go on living. Gideon decided to take matters into his own hands. Chris was protecting Wyatt, so Gideon stabbed him with an Athame."

"I'm---sorry." Darryl said. "I hope you didn't let him get away with that."

"Leo took care of that." Piper replied. "Let's just say Gideon won't be trying to kill anymore kids anytime soon."

"Darryl?" said a voice. Leo Orbed into the room. Darryl grinned.

"I thought I'd run into you sooner or later."

"Darryl just came by to talk out our little misunderstanding." Piper said. "He's agreed to help us from time to time, but he's decided not to risk his job anymore than he really has to."

"That's understandable." Leo said. "The important thing is that we can get along again. It's a shame to lose friends over things like this."

A little while later, Darryl got up from the couch and headed for the door.

"I should probably get home." He said. Suddenly a figure in black appeared out of nowhere. Darryl went into a crouch.

"Potter!" the masked figure cried. "We meet again!" Harry started to move toward the wizard, but he never made it. An extraordinary thing happened. A strange aura shimmered into life around Darryl, an aura composed of what looked like blue sparks. Darryl seemed startled by this, but composed himself quickly. He raised both hands as though to ward off a blow, but instead sent bolts of blue electricity hammering into the Death Eater. The sudden attack sent the masked man flying back against the door. His mask fell away to reveal the pale, pointed face of Lucius Malfoy. The effect on Darryl was even more amazing than his sudden magical assault.

"You!" he snarled.

"Morris!" Lucius cried. "I should have killed you when last we met! I knew you couldn't be an ordinary Muggle!" He raised his wand and pointed it at Darryl.

"I wouldn't." Harry remarked mildly. He had an idea that touching Darryl's shield wouldn't be a good idea, even with magic. But it was too late.

"Avada Kedavra!" Lucius cried. The green light struck Darryl's shield and bounced back. The deflected curse burst over Lucius Malfoy, shocking him painfully in all manner of extremely sensitive areas. He screamed in agony.

"I did warn you." Harry said. Lucius got to his feet, snarling in anger and disapparated.

"That might not have been such a good idea." Darryl remarked. "I did some messing around with his magic. It'll take a while for all his parts to get where they're going."

"You're a witch." Piper said. For a moment there was stunned silence.

Author's Note

Yeah, a cliffhanger. Boy this is starting to sound like a mystery instead of the humorous tale I'd originally intended. Oh well, plenty of time for that later. For instance, what sorts of interesting scrapes can Darryl get into while learning to harness his powers? That's not even including the adventures of Harry, Chris and Wyatt. Like I said, plenty of time for that later. Oh yeah, and I should have said this in the first Author's Note, but this Fic's going to contain spoilers from this last season. I had a reviewer comment about Darryl's hostile attitude towards the sisters coming as a surprise to them, If you've missed too many episodes, this is going to surprise you. Well, hope ya like it in the future.


	3. The Guardians

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 3: The Guardians

"Why didn't you tell us?" Paige demanded.

"I didn't know!" Darryl replied defensively.

"Maybe someone bound his powers when he was little," Phoebe suggested, "the way Grams did with us?"

"Possibly," Leo admitted, "which means it can't be done again. Once a person's powers are unbound, the binding can't be reestablished."

"What does that mean?" Darryl asked apprehensively.

"Basically," Leo explained, "it means you have to learn to harness your powers…unless of course you want to risk someone getting hurt. Believe me, this kind of power can do major damage, and once it's been unleashed it can't be locked away again. Even binding isn't a permanent solution."

"Maybe we can help." Said the voice of Ned the Cleaner, appearing in the hallway again. "We can arrange things so that if Lieutenant Morris should choose to go to Gideon's school or to Hogwarts and study up on his power, no one will think to question his whereabouts. They'll assume he's on vacation."

"Wouldn't that be---" Leo began.

"No." replied the second Cleaner, Ted, as he appeared beside his partner.

"That's right to the point." Paige remarked.

"It should reduce the chances of the Lieutenant's powers getting away from him at an inopportune moment and exposing magic." Replied Ned.

"I don't trust Gideon anymore." Leo said. "In any case, I got rid of him."

"He's been granted a reprieve." Ned replied. "The Great Elder has offered him a chance to atone for his actions. He wisely accepted. The alternative would be quite unspeakable. Apparently, he's been sentenced to spend eternity locked in the same room with Barbas listening to "I Touch Myself." Leo sniggered into his hands.

"Hey watch it, buddy!" said a familiar voice. "It ain't funny!" Barbas appeared out of nowhere. "I'm just here to make sure the good lieutenant never gets a chance to study up on his magic. There's a possible new Source on the rise, and our friend the Lieutenant would be quite aggravating if he were to learn to use those powers of his."

"Come near me and I'll kick your ass." Darryl warned. "Go back to the Underworld and touch yourself."

"Tell me that again when I've exposed your greatest fear." Barbas challenged.

"Rictocempra!" Harry cried, drawing his wand and pointing it at Barbas. The demon doubled over, howling with hysterical laughter, but it soon became apparent that it was not due to Harry's tickling spell.

"I like it!" he roared. "The little witch thinks he can---" His eyes suddenly widened. "Can it be?" he breathed. "Yes. So the mighty Harry Potter has dared to challenge the Demon of Fear. So what, we wonder, does the mighty hero fear most in all the world? What manner of unspeakable things gnaw at the very core of his being?" He raised a hand and pointed at Harry. His eyes suddenly glowed blood red, which none of the watchers had ever seen before.

"Losing your friends." Barbas breathed. "That is what you fear above all else. You fear for their lives, for their continued support. And what's this? You blame yourself for the deaths of others? It would be a Darklighter's dream come true to get his hands on such a prize. It would be easy to summon one. I would be well rewarded for such a deed." He considered. "But no," he said, "Destroying you myself would win me glory beyond imagining. I might even rule the Underworld!" His eyes flashed and abruptly Harry was hammered by image after image. Ron and Hermione were felled by Darklighter arrows or struck down by the Avada Kedavra curse. Then the nature of the images changed. Ron and Hermione cursed Harry for the deaths of their families.

"You could have done something!" Ron roared.

"Traitor!" Hermione cried.

"No!" Harry cried. "I didn't---"

"Yes!" Barbas roared. "Give in to the fear, boy! You're mine!" Then suddenly he reeled back, clutching at his chest and wheezing. Harry's legs gave out and he would have fallen but for Paige, who ran forward to support him. He huddled against her, shaking with reaction. A moment later however, he became aware that something strange was going on. Barbas was lying spreadeagled on the floor and twitching as though in pain.

"Dammit---" he wheezed, "what's going---on?"

"Yeah." Leo agreed. "If I didn't know better, I'd say he was having a heart attack."

"But those---only happen---to mortals!" Barbas tried to scream.

"Apparently not anymore." Piper replied.

"Darryl!" Phoebe suddenly exclaimed. "It must be Darryl." Indeed, Darryl's gaze was fixed unwaveringly on Barbas.

"If Darryl can give a demon a heart attack without realizing he's doing it then he'd really better learn to harness his powers." Leo replied.

"Ok---Ok---Uncle---take this thing off me---dammit!" Barbas cried. Darryl stopped looking at the demon. Barbas lurched to his feet and shimmered rather clumsily out of the house.

"What the hell?" Darryl asked.

"You gave him a heart attack." Said a calm voice. Everyone turned to see an Elder standing protectively near Wyatt and Chris. His lips were twitching as though he were trying hard not to laugh.

"All right Gideon," Leo said, "I'm only giving you another chance because the Cleaners told me the Great Elder had. They can't lie."

"Leo," Gideon replied, "we're not going to get into another fight. Let's just say that Aedrus wasn't at all pleased with my actions and saw fit to---uh---express that displeasure. My face is sore as hell. I had to use an entire bottle of that Foundation cream before I came here. He must have been wearing those bloody gauntlets he forged. He may be our master but he's a stupid great prat sometimes, him and his damned fashion accessories." At that a silver fist appeared right in front of Gideon's face.

"You wouldn't care to repeat that, would you?" said a mild voice.

"Uh---let's just---forget it, shall we?" Gideon stammered. "I was only saying that maybe you went a bit too far this morning?"

"What I did to you wasn't nearly as bad as what you almost did, buddy." The voice said. "Now we're not going to try and kill anymore kids, are we?"

"No." Gideon replied hastily. "I was just worried. Wyatt turned evil in a different---"

"Leo did his thing in time to prevent that." The voice replied. "If you keep your head on straight this time, you won't have to spend eternity listening to that stupid song…unless of course Leo here has a copy on him."

"If you play that song even once in front of me," Gideon warned, "you and I are going to fight."

"I'll be watching you two." The voice warned. "Oh and Harry, I wouldn't go searching for a girlfriend just yet. You might miss out on---something good." With that, the gauntletted fist and the voice vanished.

"Who or what was that?" Piper asked.

"That," Gideon replied, "was Aedrus, King of Whitelighters, also known as the Great Elder."

"He seems like an---interesting character." Paige observed.

"He is as long as you don't piss him off." Gideon replied. "Apparently he's got plans for Wyatt. My attempts on Wyatt came close to screwing up those plans, so Aedrus saw fit to beat me almost senseless with a pair of silver gauntlets. It was really quite painful."

"He hasn't been seen for a while." Leo remarked.

"That's because he was on another world." Gideon replied. "Nobody knows where he's been, but the moment you struck me down he came running. Let's just say he took one look at the situation, realized the truth and got really mad. The pain was really quite excruciating, and that was before the whole gauntlet thing."

"So what brought you here?" Piper asked, a slight edge to her voice.

"It's not every day that one gets to see a demon suffer a heart attack." Gideon replied. "In fact that was the first case. Actually, I was going to tell you that the Elders have decided that Chris and Wyatt need their real father."

"What?" Leo asked.

"I believe that would be you?" replied Gideon with a hint of sarcasm. "You get to stay here." Leo seemed at a loss for words.

"What about Darryl?" Phoebe asked.

"He needs to make a decision." Gideon replied. "He's spent several weeks avoiding you and now he's discovered he's a witch. He has to decide how he's going to handle it."

"What needs to be done so that I can learn whatever it is I have to?" Darryl asked. "I'd rather not risk anything. If that means learning to live with---with this power, then I suppose I'd better get on it." His words were those of someone who wanted nothing to do with magic, but he could not quite keep the eagerness out of his eyes.

"The Cleaners will arrange things so that noone becomes suspicious, and you will decide where you want to study." Gideon replied. "You can study at my school---well, Sigmund's now. That's one of the conditions I had to accept."

"But didn't you---" Leo began.

"Yes." Gideon replied. "He became a Whitelighter. Then the other Elders made him Headmaster of the school. He's really quite good actually."

"You could also come to Hogwarts." Suggested a new voice, as a tall, silver-haired man appeared suddenly in the living room.

"Professor Dumbledore." Greeted Harry.

"Harry." Dumbledore greeted. "I hope I find you well."

"Yeah." Harry replied.

"I'd like a word with you and Lieutenant Morris, if you please." Dumbledore replied. Harry and Darryl followed him out of the room.

"First of all, Harry," Dumbledore began, "I'd like to apologize for not consulting you more fully about your---er---living arrangements. I miscalculated yet again and almost cost you your life. In protecting you from Voldemort, I failed to protect you from your relatives. Let's just say that the Elders were not at all happy with me."

"It's all right." Harry replied. "I'm not Lucius Malfoy, you know. I'm not going to kill you over this."

"That's a comforting thought." Dumbledore replied. "Now, I wanted to speak to the two of you together because you both are going to protect young Wyatt and his brother until they are old enough to fulfill their destinies. You two are the Guardians."

"Who or what are they?" Darryl asked.

"You will be the first of a new order of Paladin Knights." Dumbledore replied.

"Mystic Knights." Harry supplied. "I've heard of them. They were knights who were said to possess great magical power."

"And that they did." Dumbledore replied. "I myself was one when I was younger, but none as powerful as you have ever been born, save of course for the young ladies in the living room, one of whom I am given to understand has really a rather keen interest in you, Harry." Dumbledore's lips twitched.

"Will somebody please explain what's going on?" Harry demanded, half annoyed and half laughing. "This isn't the first time someone's said something like that. First it was that Elder Aedrus and now you."

"I'm not permitted to tell you." Dumbledore replied. "Aedrus wants it to be a surprise."

"Could we maybe get back on topic here?" Darryl asked. "We're talking about my future after all."

"Indeed." Dumbledore replied. "Here's my suggestion. I suggest that, rather than choosing just one locale at which to study, you spend some time at Hogwarts, Gideon's school and of course here at the manor. That should give you plenty of resources to draw on. Your family is of course welcome. In fact it would be a good idea to move them now that your powers are awake. Demons and Death Eaters will doubtless seek to use your family to get at you if they are left out in the open."

"You're right." Darryl agreed with surprising calm. "I'm just glad my wife knows a little about magic. It'll make this easier."

"So you're going to do it?" Harry asked.

"You're gonna need my help." Darryl replied. "That demon got you pretty good judging by your face."

"Oh," Dumbledore said, "and please ask the ladies if it would be all right for you to have some friends over tomorrow. Miss Granger and a few of your old schoolmates would like a visit."

"Sure, why not?" Piper replied from the entrance to the living room. "As long as it's not the whole school."

"No no," Dumbledore replied, "I wouldn't do that to you. I'd say about five or six of them, maybe a few more. Don't worry though, they're all quite tame. Ronald might be a bit boistrous, but his girlfriend generally has good luck in keeping him in line."

"If it'll help Harry recover from whatever he's been through," Piper replied, "then don't worry about it. At least you let me know in advance. If you'd just brought them all over here I might have had a problem with it."

Harry awoke the next morning and went downstairs to the kitchen. It was still quite early, but the kitchen was not empty. Darryl sat at the table, reading Harry's copy of Quidditch Through the Ages and sipping coffee. Piper sat opposite him, and Harry was pleasantly surprised to see Hedwig purched on her knee, allowing Piper to stroke her soft feathers.

Harry entered quietly and sat at the table next to Piper, who smiled at him but didn't speak. Eventually, Hedwig spread her wings and drifted lazily over to her cage, which had become more or less permanently situated in a corner of the living room where it was still accessible but didn't get in the way of anything else.

"That's amazing." Darryl remarked. "If I'd tried that, she'd probably have ripped my hand off."

"She'll warm up to you eventually." Harry replied. He went over and stroked Hedwig gently. She hooted sleepily and gestured with one wing at her obviously empty food and water dishes. Both Piper and Darryl chuckled. Harry smiled and filled the dishes. Hedwig drank briefly, ate a little and was soon asleep.

"There's coffee if you want any," Piper replied, "and plenty of cinnamon rolls." Harry helped himself to a cinnamon roll but stayed clear of the coffee.

"I'm not really a coffee drinker." He explained.

"You're allowed to use the stove if you want to make some cocoa." Piper pointed out. "You're not in prison, you know." Harry smiled and went to get the kettle.

Author's Note

Finally, a slightly more humorous chapter. We even got a look at Gideon's more humorous side. Things should get lighter soon. Yeah, the Guardians have a serious responsibility, but that doesn't mean they can't have fun too! Hope ya like this latest chapter.


	4. Many Meetings

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 4: Many Meetings

It was close to noon. Harry sat in the living room, stroking Hedwig's feathers and watching Chris and Wyatt at play in front of the TV. Wyatt, Harry noticed, was a little too aggressive towards his baby brother, a fact that worried their mother to no end. They supposed that it might have been due in part to the fact that Wyatt was still recovering from the traumatic events of the last few weeks and probably would be for a very long time. Piper had therefore asked Harry to keep an eye on the boys while she ran some errands. Though Harry's mind was on the impending arrival of some of his old friends, his eyes never strayed from the two boys. Thus it was that the demonic presence that went unnoticed by the children did not pass undetected by their guardian. Harry leapt to his feet and drew his wand. Hedwig also seemed to sense the danger, for she flew as quickly as she could to her cage. Harry waited for the demon to show itself. It didn't take long. The being coalesced into a familiar shape.

"Barbas." Harry challenged.

"You didn't think I'd give up on you so easily, did you?" Barbas' voice had carried a trace of dry humor the last time they had met, but that was gone now. Barbas obviously meant business this time.

"You stay away from those boys." Harry warned. "Wyatt, danger!" Instantly, Wyatt's shield flared to life. He might not have liked his new brother very much, but he still moved to protect him.

"I'll deal with those two after I take care of you." Barbas said. "I never did get the chance to break you. That heart attack rather effectively put me out of commission for most of yesterday." Harry didn't know why he said what he said next. He only knew that it was absolutely true, and he didn't know how he knew.

"Other Witches can only banish you." He said. "That's not the case with me. If you provoke me I won't hesitate to destroy you."

"Even if you could," Barbas said, "which I doubt, you'd be tinkering with things you don't understand, as if you haven't already been doing just that." He raised his hand again, attempting to create the same illusions he'd used during their last meeting. Harry was ready.

"Expecto Patronum!" The silver stag exploded into existence and charged the Demon of Fear. Barbas' eyes widened in shock.

"What the---" he cried, backing away from the glowing image.

"Awww," drawled Harry sarcastically, "is the little demon afraid of a deer?" This proved to be a bit of a mistake. Barbas went ballistic. He forgot his powers and simply launched himself at Harry, his fists flailing. Harry never remembered later what he did, but one moment Barbas was pounding the living daylights out of him, and the next he was clutching at certain portions of his anatomy and bellowing in pain. One doesn't have to think hard to know what parts he was clutching at.

"not again!" he cried in dismay. He shimmered and was gone. For a moment there was only the strange sound of Wyatt's shield, then that faded. The boys came over to see if Harry was all right.

"I think maybe I might have made a mistake when I said that to him." Harry remarked, coddling his bleeding face. As if on cue, Gideon appeared.

"Maybe you'd like me to heal that before the company gets here?" he offered.

"That would be nice." Harry replied. Gideon put both hands on Harry's face and allowed the healing magic to flow from him. Harry's pain faded and the bruises vanished.

"What happened here exactly?" Gideon asked.

"Barbas put in another appearance." Harry replied. "I'd get out of here before he decides to visit again. Somehow I don't think he'd greet you with wild yelps of enthusiasm."

"That put a rather disturbing picture into my head." Gideon remarked. "Are the boys all right?"

"I managed to keep Barbas away from them." Harry answered. "Wyatt put up his shield and protected Chris. I get the feeling he's not too keen on his little brother."

"That's natural." Gideon replied.

"I know," Harry replied, "but this seems---well---personal. Piper and Leo think it's just his way of dealing with what happened to him."

"There's still a danger of him turning evil." Gideon replied. "He has enormous power, far more than any one being has ever possessed. That's why some of us were afraid of him. It's also the reason you were brought here. Something about you is going to save him if indeed he can be saved. Given your---compatibility with the boys, I'm starting to believe it may be possible."

"You didn't just come here because of what just happened." Harry said, making it a statement of fact.

"There was something I needed to talk to you about." Gideon admitted. "Before you can actually do what you have to do, you must undergo a Wiccanning ceremony. It's just a way of welcoming you to the family. It has to do with one of those things Aedrus won't let us reveal. I guess it's supposed to be some sort of surprise. Anyway, we should get this done before your guests arrive."

Gideon Orbed himself and Harry up to the attic where, Harry knew, the Book of Shadows was kept. The room seemed to throb with power. Gideon gestured Harry to the book. Harry approached it tentatively.

"Don't worry," Gideon reassured, "it only reacts to evil---" but the book had begun to glow with a golden light.

"That must be its way of saying it accepts you." Gideon observed. Harry touched the book, and immediately its pages began to turn. It stopped on a specific spell for raising the spirits of the dead.

"Speak the words." Gideon commanded. Harry took a deep breath and began.

"Here these words, here my cry, spirit from the other side. Come to me, I summon thee. Cross now the great divide." Instantly the room filled with a white light. Gideon looked startled.

"It's never done that before." He remarked. Then a group of spirits appeared. Each assumed a corporeal form.

"It's about time." Growled a familiar voice.

"Sirius!" Harry cried.

"No," replied the voice sarcastically, "it's former United States president Bill Clinton, here to seek adventure and beautiful young interns with whom to have sexual relations." Everyone laughed, including Gideon.

"I wondered when somebody would get around to bringing him here." Remarked an older lady. Harry guessed from her resemblance to the Halliwell sisters that she must be their grandmother. Rather, the sisters bore a resemblance to this spirit. Beside her stood a much younger woman who was probably a few years older than Piper. There was also a forty-something-ish woman who had to be the girls' mother. The two others---Harry gaped. The two others aside from Sirius were his own parents.

"What---" Harry began. Then his mother was embracing him. A moment later his father joined her. After a long moment, they pulled back and Sirius caught Harry in a fierce bear hug.

"I hope you haven't been too depressed about what's happened." Sirius said. "It really messes up your life. That's probably another reason you were brought here. I know you haven't gotten over me, but you can't let that ruin your life."

"Who are---" Harry began.

"They're the Halliwells' family." Sirius explained. "The one in the red dress is Penny. You were right. She's the girls' grandmother. The younger one is her daughter Patty. The third one," he indicated the youngest of the three women, "is Phoebe, Paige and Piper's eldest sister Prue. She was killed in a massive demon attack a few years ago. I'd keep quiet about her appearance, especially around Piper."

"Where are the boys?" Penny asked. Harry had to bite his tongue to keep back the sudden curse that wanted to explode from his lips. Gideon had no such luck

"Oh shit!" he swore. A moment later he and the others were in the living room. No demons, Death Eaters or Darklighters had chosen that moment to appear and make off with the boys. Unfortunately, this was not the case with Piper.

"I thought I---" she began hotly to Harry.

"He would have stayed right here if we hadn't dropped by for a visit." Penny Halliwell's voice was mild. She scooped up her newest great grandchild and began tickling him. Patty picked Wyatt up and began coddling him. This left Harry facing Prue, who had as yet not spoken a word. He opened his mouth to say something, but she motioned for him not to. She had not yet deemed it the correct moment to reveal herself to her sister.

"You got lucky this time." Piper said sternly, seemingly unaware of her mother and grandmother's presence. "There are demons who would jump at any chance to get at Chris and Wyatt."

"A demon did show up here." Harry replied mildly. "Barbas decided to come back for another round. We exchanged a few insults and then he beat the crap out of me. I'm not sure what I did to him after that, but he must not have liked it. He ran off before he could really get going." Piper practically collapsed on the couch.

"I leave for half an hour and---"

"Hey! Piper!" Penny almost yelled. "Company!" Piper looked up in shock on hearing the voice.

"Grams?" she asked.

"Last time I checked." Penny agreed. "You must not have heard me earlier. I said that Harry only left because of us."

"But why---"

"It's all right for a mother to check up on her daughter from time to time, isn't it?" Patty spoke for the first time. She went over to Piper and gave her a big hug. Piper seemed on the verge of tears. Prue, Harry noticed, had woven a rather clever little concealment spell that hid her from Piper's view.

"Did you connect with Page?" Patty was asking.

"She's here." Piper replied. "I still don't understand. Why are you here?"

"Because sisters have to stick together." Replied Prue, throwing aside the cloak of magic and embracing her younger sister. That was apparently too much for Piper. She buried her face against Prue and wept. Harry watched uncomfortably. Sirius and his parents were standing close by him, all smiling. So, Harry noticed, were Penny and her daughter. It was quite naturally at that moment that Paige and Phoebe returned from wherever they'd been. Phoebe stopped dead, her eyes wide. Paige stopped also, but it was apparent that, apart from Penny, she recognized none of the newcomers.

"What's going on here?" she asked.

"Rather a nice little family reunion." Sirius replied. Then he glanced for the first time at Paige and whistled approvingly. He gave Harry a smirk.

"Hello Miss Matthews!" he proclaimed. "Sirius Black at your service!"

"Oh---Ok?" Paige replied.

"This is my godfather." Harry said. Paige seemed to catch on and offered Sirius her hand. Then she saw Lilly and James, noted Harry's resemblance to them and made the logical connection.

"These must be your parents." She said.

"We're here for a little visit." James Potter replied. "We missed out on rather a large part of Harry's life, only about twenty-three years or so, so we thought we ought to check up on him."

"Isn't your mom allowed to get a hug from her daughter who she hasn't seen practically since she was born?" Patty Halliwell gave Paige a significant look. Paige's eyes widened. A moment later they were hugging. Paige stepped away from her real mother only to be caught straight away by her eldest half sister. She didn't appear to mind too much. Gideon watched all this with a smile. Harry noticed that there was a kind of wistful quality about that smile, as though Gideon himself would have liked to start a family but had never been given that chance.

"And finally we come to Harry." Penny was the first to approach. She embraced Harry warmly.

"We were wondering when you'd show up." She remarked. "It seems our friend Professor Dumbledore messed up yet again. Still, there's time to set things right."

"Thanks." Harry replied, not knowing what else to say. Penny glanced towards Paige.

"I like this one." She said.

"Will somebody please tell me what's going on?" Harry asked, halfway between amusement and annoyance.

"Sorry," James replied. "Supreme Elder's rules."

"You'll find out soon enough." Patty agreed.

"Personally I don't see what the big deal is." Sirius admitted.

"If we tell them now it might affect the course of events in a way we don't want." Prue replied. "Mom's right though. You'll find out what all this fuss is about soon." She approached Harry and held out her hand in an almost businesslike way. Harry remembered that Prue had always been the most serious of the three sisters. He accepted her proffered hand.

"Your exploits are practically legendary." Prue remarked. "Not many people could have gone through what you have and kept their sanity. It almost seems a shame to lay another heavy burden on you."

"If I can vanquish a dark lord I can watch a pair of little boys." Harry replied. "A certain demon has recently learned that it's not a good idea to mess with me."

"Apparently he made Barbas so angry that he forgot he had his powers." Gideon explained. "Then he did something rather painful and Barbas had to get out rather quickly."

"Then Darryl gave him a heart attack." Harry agreed. "Actually, that was yesterday."

"So it's true then." Prue remarked. "We've suspected for quite a while that Darryl wasn't like other humans, but there was never any proof."

"So what's the occasion?" Paige asked.

"Harry's birthday, for one thing." Sirius replied. "Then of course we had to welcome him to the family. It's only fitting that the guardian of the Charmed Ones' children be a part of the family."

"Today's your birthday?" Paige asked.

"Why else would I have wanted to bring some of Harry's friends here?" said a familiar voice. "Well, obviously they would visit on other occasions, but especially on his birthday!" Albus Dumbledore appeared. He took in the spirits without so much as a change of expression, shook hands with Sirius and James and embraced Lilly warmly. Seeing Gideon, he bowed respectfully.

"My Lord." He acknowledged.

"We don't need to do that anymore, Albus." Gideon replied. "Even if I wasn't in rather a bad position with the other Elders, you're no longer my student. But it is good to see you again. I trust Leo wasn't too hard on you?"

"He wasn't at all pleased with my decision in regards to Harry's situation. Still, I have been through much worse than that."

"Well," Gideon said, "I'd best be getting back. Aedrus let me return to my school. I'm not Headmaster anymore, but I'm at least allowed to teach." He turned to Harry. "Where's Lieutenant Morris?"

"He and his family went somewhere earlier today." Harry replied. "Darryl wanted to spend as much time with his wife and son as possible before he gets really involved in his magic. I think on some level he's still angry with Piper and her sisters."

"That may never be completely banished." Gideon agreed. "An experience like the one he had is bound to change a person." He turned to Penny, smiled warmly at her and then vanished.

"Your old school friends won't be arriving for a little while yet." Dumbledore said to Harry. "I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday, probably the first you've had in quite a long while." He produced a long parcel from nowhere and handed it to Harry. "It is time this was returned to its rightful wielder." Harry opened it and discovered the silver sword that had saved his life in his second year. The significance of this gift began to occur to Harry.

"This is---mine?" he asked.

"As Gryffindor's descendant," Dumbledore agreed, "you are entitled to your own. You will need it before the end of this."

"Thank you." Harry replied. The sword felt right in his hand. On an impulse, he buckled the belt about his waste, where both it and the sword faded from view.

"That's a neat trick." Sirius remarked.

"Well," Dumbledore said, "I should be off. I'll be back later with your other guests. Right now, Harry, I believe you should get to know your new family." With those words, Dumbledore vanished.

Author's Note

Well, a long chapter, but it makes up for the long period during which I was unable to do any writing. My computer suffered a massive heart attack (or maybe a stroke would be more accurate), due to an equally massive infestation of viruses. This left it inoperative for about two weeks. A long delay means a long chapter, so here it is. Hope ya like it!


	5. Revelations

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 5: Revelations

Harry could hardly believe it when he realized he'd already been living with the Halliwell sisters for two whole months. Time had simply flown by. First there had been his first birthday with the girls. The visits from Ron, Hermione and Cho had been delightful, as had the meeting with Penny, Patty, Prue, Sirius and Harry's own parents. Though Ron, Hermione and Cho had visited frequently since then, Harry hadn't seen any of the spirits, though each had promised that he would see them again. Harry woke up on this particular day, thinking he'd perhaps take Wyatt and Chris out to play at the park.

When he got downstairs though, he was greeted by the sight of Leo and Piper already on their way out with the boys in tow.

"Are you taking them on a trip?" Harry asked.

"Yeah." Piper replied. "It's nothing personal, but we'd rather this just be the four of us."

"That's all right." Harry replied. He was a little disappointed but he'd live.

"Phoebe should be coming down soon." Leo said. "Let her know where we've gone, would you?"

"Sure." Harry said.

"You don't have to stick around here all day." Piper said, perhaps sensing Harry's disappointment at being excluded from the outing. "You're a guest here, not a prisoner." Harry smiled.

A little while later Phoebe came downstairs, yawning and stretching luxuriously. Harry was sipping cocoa in the kitchen.

"Where are Piper and the boys?" she asked.

"They went on a trip." Harry said.

"I wish I could." Phoebe remarked. "Instead I get to go to work."

"I wish I could find a job." Harry remarked. "Then again, it's not as though I've got much work experience thanks to the Dursleys."

"If you wouldn't mind working alongside me I could talk to my boss and see if we can't get you a job at the paper."

"That'd be all right." Harry replied.

"I'll do that today." Phoebe replied. "Before I do anything though I need coffee!"

A few hours later, Harry sat in the living room and watched TV. There really wasn't much on at this time of the morning, unless of course you liked shows about cooking or daytime sopes. Neither of these things interested Harry, but he'd managed to unearth the girls' collection of DVD's and had found the three Lord of the Rings films. Hermione had given him the novels for his birthday as well as The Hobbit, and Harry hadn't been able to put them down. He'd heard that the movies were excellent and was delighted to be able to watch them now.

Harry had slipped the first movie into the DVD player and was just settling down on the couch when Paige came downstairs. The weather forecast had said it was going to be another warm one, and Page had apparently gotten dressed with that in mind. Harry had to work hard to hide his delight at the amount of fair skin that was left exposed by the hem of her skirt. Though he'd only known her a short time, Harry rather suspected that he was developing a thing for Paige. As if she could read his thoughts, Page came and settled herself beside him on the couch.

"Where are the others?" she asked.

"Phoebe went to work and Piper and Leo took the boys somewhere." Harry replied.

"And they left you here all by your lonesome?" Paige gave Harry a sympathetic smile. "They pull that stuff with me all the time."

"I'm all right." Harry replied.

"There's one good thing about this." Paige remarked. "It gives us time to hang out without any interference." Harry smiled.

A few hours later after the movie was over, Harry began thinking about what to do next. He didn't want to hang around the house all day.

"I've got an idea." Paige said. Something about her tone made Harry look at her in surprise. It was only then that he noticed that she'd managed to slip her hand into his without his noticing. At that thought, he wondered how such a thing could have happened. Paige had very nice hands. Those eyes of hers weren't exactly painful to look into either.

"Oh?" Harry asked. Paige responded by pulling him rather closer to her than was strictly proper, not that Harry had any objections.

"I've been watching you since you got here." Paige remarked.

"I've noticed that." Harry replied.

"I thought you might have." Paige agreed. "I take it you don't have a girlfriend."

"Uh---no." replied Harry.

"Are you in the market?" Paige asked.

"Uh---I suppose I am---" Harry began. Paige's full lips just happened to brush his at that point. Harry realized too late that this was what she'd been leading up to. He noticed that there was a seriousness about the kiss that was not that of an infatuated young lady. Paige had obviously thought long and hard about this and knew what she wanted. Harry realized that, whether she'd meant to or not, Page had given him an excuse to tell her his true feelings as soon as she gave him the chance.

"You're not totally freaked?" Paige asked, pulling back.

"No." Harry replied. "To tell the truth I---uh---well---"

"You feel the same way." Paige made it a statement of fact.

"Yeah." Harry replied with undisguised relief.

"Excellent." Paige replied, drawing the word out in the manner of Mr. Burns from The Simpsons.

"Thank you Ma'am." Harry replied in an uncanny impersonation of Mr. Smithers. This made Paige laugh, which Harry found extremely sexy.

"Do you want to give it a try?" Paige asked.

"You mean---being a couple?"

"No," Paige replied lightly, "I meant rocking the Casbah." It took a moment for Harry to realize she was joking.

"Oh." He replied. "Yeah, I'd be Ok with that."

"All right then." Paige replied.

A little while later, Paige and Harry left the manor. They'd decided to go get coffee at a little place Paige went to from time to time. They held hands as they made their way to Page's car. Once inside however, they couldn't, since as yet nobody had come up with a way to drive safely with only one hand. Well, Harry imagined it could be done, but it would take a deal of getting used to before you'd want to take it out on the road.

"Any idea where Darryl is?" Harry asked. "I haven't seen him since yesterday."

"He's at work." Paige replied. "He's setting things in order so he can go study magic. Maybe we'll swing by and see him when he's on break."

The Java Hut was only lightly populated, so it was easy for Harry and Paige to find places. Much to their surprise, sitting across from them was none other than Detective Sheridan, the woman who'd come after Darryl. Paige stiffened at the sight of her and whispered for Harry to keep his eye out.

"She knows Darryl's a friend of ours."

"Paige, isn't it?" Sheridan asked lightly. "You would be a friend of Inspector Morris?"

"Damn right." Paige replied.

""I'd like a word with you." Sheridan motioned for Paige to follow her, then as an afterthought beckoned Harry along. They stepped outside and moved to a sheltered place where they weren't likely to be overheard.

"I know your secret." Detective Sheridan said. "You're a Witch. If I'm not mistaken, Inspector Morris has been covering for you."

"How do you---" Paige began. Lightning suddenly lanced from Sheridan's hands, but Harry reacted too quickly for it to do any harm. His sword appeared in his hand and he deflected the bolts back at the startled detective. Instantly a black shadow rose from her. Harry called on his magic and incinerated the demon before it could take form.

"Nice." Paige complimented.

"What just happened?" Detective Sheridan asked. "Where did that come from?"

"You were possessed." Paige replied.

"You'd better let us handle this." Said a familiar voice. "Magic hasn't been exposed yet, but if she's allowed to remember this incident, it may be." The Cleaners materialized and held their hands out to the detective. A moment later she smiled brightly at Page and Harry.

"I'll just go finish my coffee." She replied.

"We brought ours with us." Harry replied, sipping at his remarkably unspilled cocoa.

"Congratulations, by the way." The Cleaner called Ned remarked. "The Elder's prediction seems to have come true."

"It's nice to know we're doing what we're supposed to be doing." Paige remarked dryly, taking Harry's free hand possessively. "And if anybody up there's thinking about trying to break us up like they did Piper and Leo, feel free to buzz off!"

"We'll leave you to your---amusements then." Ted said. Then he and his partner vanished.

"Think it's late enough to go see Darryl?" Harry asked.

"If not it shouldn't be too long." Paige said.

Darryl Morris had already left on his break when Harry and Paige arrived at the station. The officer at the front desk told them he'd gone to a sandwich shop a block away. He didn't want to give them the location until they explained that they were just friends wanting to pay him a visit. At that the officer relaxed and told them where to find Darryl.

Paige and Harry found Darryl eating at a picnic table with another officer, presumably his partner. They were arguing enjoyably about something as Paige and Harry came up and sat down.

"It'll happen eventually." Darryl's partner was saying. "Nobody's that good."

"The guy's untouchable." Darryl disagreed. "Granted a few people have come pretty close, but nobody's cut the cracker. Even when he's been wrong he hasn't wagered enough to do any real damage to his score."

"What's this?" Paige asked. Darryl glanced up.

"Oh, hi." He said. "Me and Kyle were just arguing about that guy on Jeopardy."

"Is he still champ?" Paige asked.

"He's been for about four weeks now." Darryl replied. "The guy's made close to eight-hundred-thousand bucks."

"Damn!" Paige exclaimed. "Has anybody even come close to beating him?"

"Close," Darryl replied, "but close doesn't cut it with this guy. Even when he's wrong he doesn't do any real damage to his score, even on Final Jeopardy."

"These friends of yours?" the officer named Kyle asked.

"Yeah." Darryl replied. "The girl's Piper Halliwell's sister Paige. The guy---"

"It can't be!" Kyle exclaimed. "It's got to be a clever look-alike. Harry Potter?"

"Last time I checked." Harry replied.

Darryl turned to Page and explained, "This is Kyle Brody. He's new around here." Lowering his voice a bit he went on, "He seems to know an awful lot about magic. Anyway, he's my new partner."

"Brody, huh?" Harry remarked. "Makes me think of Indiana Jones and that friend of his, Marcus Brody." Both Kyle and Darryl grinned at that.

"So he's real?" Kyle asked.

"Apparently JK Rowling didn't realize it." Darryl agreed. "Anyway, he's staying with the girls and protecting their kids. I'm supposed to be his partner once I learn everything I have to. That's the real reason I'm taking a leave of absence."

"I think just to be safe we won't mention that to anyone else." Kyle replied. "Nobody'd believe us if we did. Besides, I'd rather not jeopardize my own mission."

"Thanks." Darryl said sincerely. "I still think you should tell me what this mission of yours is."

"Right now I'd rather only I knew about it." Brody replied. Darryl sighed and nodded. Then he noticed that Paige had slipped her hand into Harry's again.

"Are you two---y'know---"

"And if we are?" Paige replied mildly.

"I was just curious." Darryl replied mildly.

"It's no big deal, really." Said a mild voice. Harry turned to see a tall young man with golden hair and peculiar amber eyes. Without knowing how he knew, Harry was sure this was Aedrus, the Elder who had shown Gideon his gauntletted fist.

"You're both Whitelighters." Aedrus continued. "Paige is half Whitelighter and you, Harry, are what I like to call the full meal deal. Lilly and James were Whitelighters before they became mortal to have you. Their powers are in your blood, and it's high time you learned to use them."

"I'd say he's got enough to deal with getting used to having a girlfriend." Darryl laughed, seemingly unbothered by the newcomer.

"I was sort of hoping Paige might show him the ropes." Aedrus said. "By the way, Darryl, I wanted to give you this." He pressed a medallion into Darryl's hands. It looked like the one Prue had given Harry before she and her mother had returned to the heavens, except that it was jet black.

"You two are Paladin Knights." Aedrus said. "These amulets are the links to your armor. I dare say you'll need that before your task is completed."

"I'll try not to let you down." Darryl said. "I just hope they'll give me time to learn what I have to."

"They will indeed." Aedrus said. "And now I must be getting back."

Back at the manor, Paige was most delighted to find that she and Harry were still alone. She decided it was time for a little more mischief. It was quite a long while later before Harry managed to free his lips from hers.

"Shouldn't we be---" he began.

"I thought we were." Paige said, capturing his lips again.

"I mean the whole Whitelighter thing." Harry said, though in all honesty he had absolutely no problem with Paige's current lesson plan.

"Oh." Paige replied. "We'll get to that. Right now I think we should take full advantage of being alone. Piper probably won't like this new situation that much, so we've got to make the best of it."

It was quite naturally at that moment that Piper and Leo returned. Leo just happened to Orb in first, saw Paige wrapped comfortably about Harry on the couch, did a double take and then laughed.

"It's happened I see." He said.

"What is going on in here?" Piper demanded.

"They've still got their clothes on." Leo said, still grinning.

"That's not the point!" Piper objected.

"Will you stay out of my business for a change?" Paige snapped.

"I leave you two alone---" Piper began.

"It's really not our business." Leo said firmly. "Anyway, I told you this might happen, and so did Aedrus. That was what he meant when he told Harry not to go girl hunting."

"But---but---" Piper stammered.

"Even Grams suspected something." Leo cut in. "Didn't you see how she was looking at Paige when she said she liked Harry? And haven't you seen the way Paige has watched him? It could only mean one thing."

"Do you really have a problem with it?" Harry asked, ignoring Paige's sharp jab to the ribs.

"Do I---" Piper began. Then she seemed to consider. "No." she finally said. "It's just that it's so soon."

"You'd be surprised." Leo said. "Some of the best relationships I've seen start soon after the people meet. It just depends on the people is all. To be honest I'd be honored if Harry were to be Wyatt's uncle."

"Isn't that against the rules?" Piper asked.

"Not really." Leo said. "He's a Whitelighter after all and so's Paige."

"Harry's---"

"Apparently my parents were." Harry explained. "Aedrus paid us a visit when we went to see Darryl earlier."

"If he is," Piper said, "he'll need training."

"We'll work it all out." Leo said. "In the meantime we won't interfere with him and Paige. Magic owes them both bigtime. I think that's why they were brought together."

"I guess you're right." Piper admitted. "I'm just the big sister. I'm supposed to worry and fuss about stuff like that."

"Did the boys have fun?" Paige asked.

"We took them to the park." Leo said. "Then the Elders called me to let me know you'd made your move."

"How'd they know?" Paige asked.

"Aedrus. Didn't you say he visited you and Harry while you were with Darryl?"

"Yeah." Harry said. "He did."

"Just keep Phoebe off my back, would you?" Paige asked.

"She won't bother you." Leo said. "She probably knew all along."

"You mean it's official?" Piper asked.

"Yeah." Paige replied.

"Does this mean you're going to have different sleeping arrangements?" Piper asked Harry. Her tone seemed half-disapproving and half-teasing.

"What's it to you?" Paige asked. Harry laughed.

"Something funny?" Piper demanded.

"It's just that you're acting like you walked in on Paige and I rocking the Casbah." Harry replied.

"Rocking the---" Piper began.

"Leave it." Leo said firmly.

"But---"

"Leave it." Leo repeated. "Harry's responsible and so's Paige, even if she is impetuous." Harry grinned. At least he had one ally in this.

Author's Note

I decided to do some rewriting of this Fic. I changed Darryl's lunch partner from an Evans to the Agent Brody we all know from the show, but since this is an A/U I decided that they should get along. Ol' Brody'll figure more prominently when it comes time for the Paladins to face their final battle. Well, hope ya like it.


	6. A Warrior's Trial

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 6: The Warrior's Trial

Halloween had come and gone, then the Thanksgiving holiday as well. Before Harry knew it, it was December. Even though he hadn't lived with the Halliwells for more than five or six months, the manor felt far more like home than Privet Drive ever had. Even Hogwarts couldn't quite compare. Maybe it was his blossoming relationship with Paige. They still slept in separate rooms, but Harry felt things hadn't progressed far enough for them to take that step. Even if nothing came of it till they were married, sharing a room with someone isn't always an easy thing to do. Harry knew from his life in the Gryffindor boys' dorm at Hogwarts that sharing a room with other people could get on one's nerves from time to time.

Harry crawled out from under the covers with regret, noticing how cold it had become lately. He dressed as quickly as he could and headed downstairs. Nobody was around, but Harry found a note from Piper on the kitchen table. There were cinnamon rolls in the refrigerator if he wanted one. She'd gone to run errands and both Paige and Phoebe were at work. Harry decided he'd help himself to a cinnamon roll. Piper had spent most of the day before yesterday making them. He turned towards the refrigerator, and that was when the stunning spell hit him full in the back.

When Piper came home, she noticed that the house was alarmingly silent. She called Harry's name but got no response. Only then did she hear the cries of her sons. In sudden panic, Piper hurried upstairs. Chris and Wyatt had been bound with magical cords. Wyatt was fighting with all his strength to try to get free of his bonds, but they apparently resisted his every effort. Piper glanced around and saw a note on the dresser. She picked it up and read as follows:

"We have the Potter boy. Do not attempt to find him. The cords with which I bound your children are spelled to perform a killing curse should you interfere. Would you sacrifice your own sons to save a stranger? I think not." A slow and terrible rage began to work its way through Piper's blood. Quite apart from the fact that these people would put two children's lives in danger, they had the nerve to attack an unsuspecting boy from behind. Piper didn't have to have seen the attack to know that was how it had happened. Piper wanted very much to lay hands upon Mr. Lucius Malfoy, whom she was quite sure was behind this attack. If she could just get her hands on him for five seconds, he would rue the day he'd been born.

Darryl Morris was napping when he felt the tremor in the air. It was almost like tossing a stone into a still pond. The rock would create ripples, which would travel the entire surface of the water. That was how this tremor felt, and Darryl knew it wasn't good. He also knew that it had something to do with Harry. Instantly the amulet that he always wore now began to throb against his chest. He moved as quietly as he could in hopes of not disturbing his wife. But the red glow that came from the amulet penetrated her eyelids. She sat up in alarm.

"What?" she cried groggily.

"I think Harry's in trouble." Darryl said. "I think something's happened to him." Sheila had been introduced to Harry shortly after his arrival, and the young man had become almost like a son, even though neither she nor Darryl was all that much older than he was.

"Then you'd better go to him." she said.

"But you---" Darryl began.

"We'll be fine." Sheila replied. "Remember what the Elders told you. Harry has to protect Wyatt and Chris. If he doesn't, nothing will matter. Besides, if Paige loses Harry---"

"It'd be too much for all three of them." Darryl agreed. "I'll find him." He focused his thought on the medallion. Using its power, he was instantly at the Halliwell Manor.

Harry came awake with a start. He was tied to what must have been a stone pillar. Before him stood the figure of Lucius Malfoy.

"I knew I'd catch you one of these days, Potter." He said coldly. "Your lady friends weren't much help to you. And do you know why that was? I diverted them. Paige had no temp job, and Phoebe wasn't actually called into work. Piper did have some errands to run that weren't of my making, but it worked to my advantage, wouldn't you say? And they won't come after me. I've arranged it so they'll be afraid to in case their children come to harm. I find the threat of harm to loved ones is even more effective at keeping people in line than actually harming them. The imagined harm is far more terrible than the real thing. In that respect my lord was in error. Now with him gone I can seize power in my own way. But first, someone wants to say hello." A figure materialized out of flame right in front of Harry.

"I've been waiting to get my revenge against you, Potter." Barbas said. His voice was hot with rage.

"You!" Harry snarled.

"Nobody kicks Barbas in the balls and gets away with it." The demon growled. "It was quite unbearable when Inspector Morris saved your sorry butt from me just as I was about to break you, but that was nothing compared to the humiliation you caused me! But my pal Lucius gave you to me as a gift in exchange for my services. He wants you out of the way. I offered to accommodate him and he graciously accepted."

"After his spirit is broken," Lucius said, "I will inflict upon him such torment that he will wish he were insane. But we shan't grant him that relief."

"You'll pay for this." Harry said. "Sooner or later they'll come."

"And I will deal with them as easily as I have dealt with you." Lucius said. "Understand this, Potter. You are in no danger of being rescued."

"Or of overcoming your fears." Barbas said. "I'll see to that even if they do find a way to vanquish me later. I'll go knowing I cowed the mighty Harry Potter!"

Darryl stood in the kitchen, his senses alert.

"He was here." He said to Piper. "He was standing right about here." He moved to a spot in front of the fridge.

"What can you sense?" Piper asked frantically.

"He was attacked while he was reaching for the door to the fridge." Darryl said. "It's almost like I'm actually seeing it."

"Who did it?" Piper asked.

"All I can see is a---a hand?" His voice was puzzled.

"What?" Piper asked.

"It's a silver hand---" Darryl's voice trailed off. Then suddenly he reached out as though he could see someone. There was a startled scream and a rat materialized in Darryl's hand. Darryl made as though to crush the small creature.

"Show yourself." He growled. "Your friends aren't here to save you, so unless you want me to squash you you'd better show yourself." Reluctantly, the rat changed into a human. The sight of Darryl in all that black Paladin armor was quite intimidating to Piper, but it was far more so for the little man on the floor.

"You c-can't d-do anything." The man squeaked. "If you do t-try to interfere your c-children will die."

"That's what he wants us to think." Darryl said. "I saw through that one right away."

"Give him here." Said a voice. It was Paige, but her tone was so unlike her usual cheery one that Darryl almost didn't recognize her. He considered.

"Yeah." He said. "I think we'll let Paige question you." Paige seized the little man roughly and had to exercise in human control to keep from wringing his scrawny neck.

"Where is he?" she demanded.

"I w-won't t-tell you anything!"

"No?" Paige's voice was icy. Instantly electrical energy surged from her hands into the little man's body. He screamed. Darryl was reminded of the way Leo had supposedly reacted when future Chris had died.

"You're Wormtail, aren't you?" Paige asked. She sent wave after wave of electricity into Wormtail's body, never changing expression as she did. "The name's not unfitting." Paige went on. "I mean, no other animal would sell his best friends to a power hungry psycho just to stay alive."

"All right!" Wormtail finally squeaked. "I'll t-tell you what I know!"

"Where did you send him?" Paige demanded.

"H-he's at Malfoy Manor." Wormtail said. "Lucius M-Malfoy wanted him."

"We got that part." Darryl said, drawing his sword. He later admitted to Harry that he hadn't known exactly how he'd summoned the armor or the weapon, but right then he didn't think about it.

"Tell me how to find him." Paige said. "I'll find out from you one way or the other, but if you want to do it the hard way I'll be more than happy to accommodate you."

"I can't." Wormtail sobbed. "I d-don't know."

"He's lying." Darryl said. "I don't know how I know, but I know. He's hiding something." Darryl set the point of his sword against Wormtail's neck.

"You seem to be in a bit of a bind." He said conversationally. "If you tell us anything ol' Lucy'll kill you. If you don't, I will. Even if I don't, Paige will make you wish I had." At that moment, Leo Orbed into the room. He saw Wormtail and his face went white with rage.

"I should've known you were behind this you sorry bastard!" He grated. "You're going to tell us everything, or I swear I'll make you wish you'd never been born!" Slowly, Wormtail spilled out the story. He told of how he'd been set to spy on the family and how he'd cleverly manipulated Paige and Harry together.

"Cleverly manipulated my ass." Paige muttered. "That might've been a mistake. We've got each other to fight for now."

"He hoped to use you to weaken Harry." Wormtail admitted. "He knew he could never hold you even if he could catch you, so he thought to capture Harry and threaten him with harm to you."

"We'll do more than threaten." Said a new voice. Gideon had somehow snuck in without being noticed. "If you don't tell us where Harry is, I really will inflict unspeakable agony upon you, or Paige will. Hell, we can do it together. Now spit it out!"

The last few hours had been an unending nightmare for Harry. Barbas had hammered his mind with image after image of Ron and Hermione and all his friends. They'd either died or abandoned him, thinking him a traitor. Next, the demon had hit him with images of himself failing to fulfill his destiny, always a fear that had gnawed at Harry's mind. And now Lucius was hitting him with the Cruciatus Curse. The agony was unspeakable, but Harry had not screamed once. Lucius and Barbas had silenced him with their magic. Now both were lashing at him with their powers, their expressions twin masks of unholy delight.

"Awwww," Barbas mocked, "Did I hoit you?" this served only to make Harry angry. Barbas realized he'd lessened his victim's fear with that taunt and hammered him with more terrible visions. This time they were of Paige. She was in trouble and he couldn't go to her. Then she accused him of betraying the family.

"That's more like it." Barbas growled. "Shall we continue?"

"Let's." Lucius agreed. And so they did.

Not long afterward, Lucius and Barbas left Harry to anticipate what they would do next. They were replaced by Draco, Lucius' spiteful son. Draco tortured Harry a little himself, using all manor of spells to inflict pain. Harry began to despair. If the Halliwells could have done something, he thought, they'd have done it before now. Then a voice spoke directly to his mind. It was Gideon.

"Concentrate on the medallion Prue gave you." He said. "Remember what Aedrus told you." And Harry did. Almost the last thing Prue had done before she'd departed was to give Harry that amulet.

"You'll need it." Was all she'd said. Then Aedrus had come and given Darryl a similar amulet.

"You are both Paladins." He'd said. "Those amulets connect you to each other and to your armor." Harry bent all his failing will upon the medallion. It was at exactly that moment that Lucius and Barbas made their return. They stopped in the doorway, stunned by what they saw. A silver aura had sprung to life around Harry, an aura that would shield him from all attempts to harm him. Lucius was the first to break the silence.

"No!" he roared. The silver aura solidified around Harry, becoming armor. Barbas roared in rage and launched himself at Harry. He struck at Harry and managed to dispel the aura.

"None of that!" he snapped. But in that instant an image had appeared in Harry's mind, an image of Paige. She was questioning Wormtail in the kitchen at the manor. Her strength washed over Harry and he found comfort in it.

"No!" Barbas bellowed, as his hold over Harry was broken. Lucius rounded on the demon in rage.

"You said you could break him!" he snarled.

"Don't take that tone with me, buddy." Barbas said coldly. "I could easily break you. After all, is your greatest fear not discovery? Don't you fear that you'll lose your influence over the Minister of Magic? I could arrange that if I so chose. You're just lucky I have to deal with Potter." Barbas' eyes glowed blood red and locked onto Harry's. Instantly a searing pain filled Harry's being as the demon's magic burned through him. Harry's resistance crumbled at last as he lost his grip on Paige's image. Barbas and Lucius both shouted in triumph as they saw the will to fight leave Harry's eyes. He was theirs---or so they thought.

Paige saw the red sparks crawl over Darryl's armor and knew that he was sensing Harry's pain. The black-armored Paladin bore his comrade's suffering well, but Paige could feel Darryl's anger beginning to build.

"Why doesn't he use the medallion?" Darryl demanded at one point.

"He tried." Gideon said. "He almost succeeded but Barbas got to him too quickly.

"I'm going after him." Paige said.

"No!" Gideon cried. "It's too dangerous!"

"You can't stop me!" Paige retorted.

"I---" Gideon began, but Darryl cut him off.

"At least let me go with you." He said to Paige. "Somehow I've got a feeling I have to be there."

"You can't be serious!" Piper exclaimed.

"They are." Gideon said calmly. "Moreover I think they may be right."

"I'm not losing her!" Piper retorted.

"Then let her make this choice on her own." Gideon said. "If Wyatt and Chris are going to be saved, Harry must be protected. It very much looks as if the only way that's going to happen is through Paige. Since neither one of us wants Paige to go alone, the best thing is for Darryl to go with her."

"He has a trial to face." Leo agreed. "He still harbors a lot of anger towards us, and in order to become a true Paladin he has to overcome that."

"Then it's decided." Darryl said. "Paige and I will go after Harry."

"I'm coming as well." Gideon said. "I have some business of my own with Lucius Malfoy. Piper, you and Leo keep an eye on Master Wormtail. Don't let him escape."

Harry's life had become an unending torrent of pain. All his defenses had been stripped from him. He was helpless. He ceased caring about whether or not anyone would be there to save him. Thus it was that he didn't notice right away when Lucius' exultant laughter became a cry of dismay.

"What?" he demanded. "I thought I---"

"You've gone too far this time Malfoy!" Gideon's voice snarled. "First you manipulated me and now you torture an innocent man. There's one advantage to my not being an Elder anymore. There's nothing to stop me from killing you!"

Gideon hammered into Lucius with waves of lightning. Paige was dueling with Lucius' son Draco and quite clearly in need of help. Darryl was engaged in deadly combat with Barbas.

"They almost got you killed last time." Barbas said. "Oh, and let's not forget the time they stole your soul without your permission. Seems to me that isn't the mark of a true friend. Shouldn't you hate them? They should be your enemies, not your friends. You should turn them in as Witches." At those words, Darryl's resolve began to waver. He hadn't realized just how much anger he still harbored toward the sisters, but apparently it was there. If it hadn't been, Barbas' words would have had no power over him. As it was, they were extremely persuasive. He could insure that nothing happened to his family just by blowing the sisters' cover. For a long moment he glanced from Page to Barbas, his mind racing with indecision. Could he keep his family safe at the expense of another? It almost seemed as though he could do just that, and indeed he came very close to doing it as the memories of what had almost happened to him rushed through his mind. It would be an easy thing to have the girls arrested for all the people they'd killed in the course of their Wiccan duties. But then he glanced at Harry and saw that the lad was thoroughly broken. His eyes were dulled by pain and he seemed unaware of his new situation.

"Strike me down." Barbas challenged. "Give into your anger and you'll be ready to do what you have to do." But the voice no longer held any power over Darryl. He turned calmly to Barbas and sheathed his weapon.

"I don't think you've got any hold over me anymore." He said. "I could turn the girls in, but that would go against who and what I am. I won't risk innocent lives to save my own."

Barbas looked stunned. For a moment he simply stood there, his blazing eyes wide with shock. Then he launched himself at Darryl with a roar of pure fury. He never made it. A portal of flame opened around him and he was sucked down into the depths of the Underworld. This left Paige, Draco, Gideon and Lucius. Lucius had drawn a small poisoned dagger, and Darryl was just in time to see the knife sink into Gideon's throat.

"Gideon!" he yelled. But something extraordinary happened. A wave of energy erupted from Gideon's wound and hammered into Lucius, and in an instant his body had disintegrated. From its remains rose a black shadow that took form, becoming someone Darryl knew.

"You!" he snapped.

"Me." Cole Turner agreed coldly. For a moment there was stunned silence. Then Page spoke.

"But how---"

"I traveled back in time and took possession of a mortal body." Cole said. "I was weaker than I'd ever been, so I fed on the boy's anger. I grew strong. With my aid he discovered the Chamber of Secrets at Hogwarts. I used that to cover up my true goal, to grow strong enough to take revenge on the Charmed Ones. I'd have succeeded if not for this boy!"

"You're Voldemort." Harry breathed.

"Indeed." Cole snarled. "When you were born I knew you would threaten my very existence if you were allowed to grow up. I tried to kill you but of course that failed. Tom Riddle's body was destroyed and I was almost exposed. I took refuge inside what was left of his soul and I waited. When I returned to power ten years ago I thought I was safe, but then you interfered again. When you vanquished Tom Riddle at the end of your seventh year at Hogwarts I knew I could not rely on him for concealment anymore. I chose Lucius Malfoy. But still you were there, biting like a mosquito that I couldn't reach no matter how hard I tried! Then, much to my dismay, you moved in with the Charmed Ones and got together with Paige. Now look what you've done!" He raised his hands, but Paige and Darryl were ready. Darryl shattered Harry's bindings and Paige Orbed the three of them out of the demon's reach. The last things they saw were Cole and Draco's enraged expressions. Then they were gone.

"What about Gideon?" Paige suddenly cried.

"He's gone." Darryl said sadly. "I think he knew he wouldn't survive that fight."

"SO this is how they reward him?" Paige demanded. "They kill him again?"

"Don't worry." Darryl replied. "He's at peace now. The Elders will learn from his mistakes."

Harry awoke to find himself back at the Halliwell Manor. He ached all over from the Cruciatus Curse, but at least the torture had ended. Gradually he became aware that Paige was hugging him.

"How is he?" Piper's voice asked.

"Weak." Darryl replied. "They got him pretty good."

"I can't believe it was Cole all this time." Phoebe sounded stunned and horrified all at once.

"Something's not right about that." Darryl observed. "I sensed something when I saw him take form. I have a feeling it may not be just Cole. Something's influencing him."

"What do you mean?" Piper asked.

"I mean he's drawing his strength from some other being, maybe even more than one." Darryl replied. "All I know for sure is that they're more powerful than anything this world has ever seen, and that means they're that much more dangerous."

"And with Belthezor to aid them---" Phoebe left the thought unfinished.

"We have to stop them at any cost." Darryl said. "If we don't---well, I don't think any of us would like the future they'd create."

"Magic owes Harry more than ever now." Paige remarked, quite clearly having heard none of the conversation that had just taken place.

"You're its payment." Piper said, clearly welcoming the change of subject. It was apparent that she had fully accepted the reality of Paige and Harry's situation. "The Elders owe you both, so they brought you together."

"I think some peace is in order here." Aedrus' voice said. He materialized in the living room, and everyone was amazed to see his company. Lilly and James Potter hurried to their son, followed closely by Sirius. Then came Prue, Penny and Patty.

"I told you we'd meet again." Prue said to Harry. She gave him a big hug, apparently not concerned about showing her feelings this time. "You used the medallion, didn't you?" Harry was too weak to reply, but Prue didn't need him to.

"Belthezor's going to be very weak for some time." Aedrus was saying. "Even with his new allies to aid him it'll take him a while to pull himself together. We're going to give Harry that time to recover, with a little help from Miss Paige of course. Wyatt and Chris will want a strong healthy Whitelighter." He smiled and added, "They'll want a strong healthy uncle as well." At that, Harry finally managed to speak.

"What?" he asked.

"Don't tell me you haven't caught on?" Aedrus laughed. Darryl saved his friend.

"Could I ask you something?"

"Of course." Aedrus replied. "Then again you just did, but I guess I can let you ask me something else."

"What happened to Gideon?"

"He'll be fine." Aedrus replied. "He's very weak at the moment, but we got to him in time. He's earned a place among the greatest heroes today."

"He could also use as much food as you can scrape together." Said a new voice. Gideon had appeared, leaning on the arm of his old friend Sigmund who, surprisingly, seemed to have either forgotten about or forgiven Gideon's attempt to kill him.

"We'll take care of it." Aedrus agreed.

When Harry awoke the next morning, he found himself lying close beside Paige in what was clearly her bed. Apparently she'd been shaken badly enough by yesterday's events to make the next move. Harry had no objections. It was nice and cozy under the thick blankets and Paige's hair felt good when his fingers happened to brush against it. This brought Paige to consciousness and she turned to face him.

"You're not gonna freak?" she asked.

"I think if I was I'd have done it before now." Harry replied.

"What do you say we make this little arrangement official?" Paige suggested. Harry smiled and nestled close against her. He knew that with her at his side things would be just fine.

Author's Note

Yeah this story's proceeding more quickly than I'd originally thought it would, but I'm happy with it. I've pretty much decided it's going to be a series and not just one story. The next installment will probably pick up a few years down the road for the Halliwells and probably be a more lighthearted tale like what I'd originally planned for this one. I'll probably squeeze in a few misadventures for Harry and Darryl before this Fic's over. I did hint at that after all, and they'll want to train up before they fight their final battle, so there's room for some amusing misadventures. Some of you might think I didn't emphasize Darryl's test enough and you're probably right. I'm always rewriting chapters of my stories, so I may rewrite this one at a later date. Maybe I can even do it without totally screwing it up. All I can say right now is that I certainly enjoyed writing this chapter, and hopefully at least some of you will enjoy reading it.


	7. The Penalty for Failure

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 7: The Penalty for Failure

The great throne room in Malfoy Manor was almost as large as the great hall at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The Malfoy men, Lucius especially, had fancied themselves the next thing to royalty, and this vast castle was a reflection of their arrogance. Until very recently, the throne had been occupied by one Lucius Malfoy and his wife Narcissa. But Lucius was dead and Narcissa was in the Underworld. She had refused to accept the new order and had paid the price. Now, the throne was occupied by a black shadow. Though he had assumed a human shape during the confrontation with Harry Potter, Cole Turner, also known as the demon lord Belthezor, could not yet take physical form. He sat now on the throne and allowed his anger to consume him. Potter had been a thorn in Cole's side for twenty-three years, and he'd finally managed to do what Cole had been fighting to prevent. Because of Potter, Cole's return was known to the Charmed Ones.

Cole's face came up slowly as he sensed the approach of a human. It was the boy who had almost let Potter escape. Lucius Malfoy had spoken most highly of his son Draco, but Draco had almost lost Potter and had therefore lost the demon lord's favor, not that he had ever really had it. Cole's eyes found Draco's and he saw with immense satisfaction that Malfoy recoiled from him.

"What is it?" Cole demanded.

"M---my Lord," Draco began, "the one you sent for has arrived. She's waiting outside." Cole felt a surge of satisfaction. The woman who had started this whole fiasco would soon be receiving a bill of pain and agony for her failure. She had let her guard down and Potter had escaped to San Francisco and the protection of the Halliwell sisters.

"You will show her in and then be gone." Cole said. "I will send for you when I am finished with her." Draco seemed only too happy to obey. A moment later he pushed a squat figure into the throne room and let the great doors close behind her.

Cole gazed dispassionately at the figure before him. Then he motioned for the woman to raise her face. Wide, bulging eyes gazed in terror at the shadowy form on the throne. A slack-lipped mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. Cole was the first to break the silence.

"Dolores!" he cried, his tone one of false cheerfulness. "Dolores Umbridge! How good of you to drop by!"

"M-my Lord?" Umbridge stammered.

"It's been far too long since our last visit." Cole replied, his tone still falsely cheerful. Umbridge quite clearly understood that something wasn't right, for she backed away.

"Tell me," Cole began in a conversational tone, "have you located the Potter boy as yet?"

"N-no, master." Umbridge replied. "I've tried scrying for him, but---" Cole interrupted her.

"I was most displeased," he said, finally dropping the false cheerfulness, "to learn that you had failed to neutralize him."

"My Lord?" Umbridge asked.

"I would have thought a Darklighter would be able to subdue a mortal no matter how hard they fought. I would also have thought that your hatred of Harry Potter for what he did to you during your brief spell as Headmistress of Hogwarts would have inspired you to work especially hard to break him."

"My Lord, he---" Umbridge began.

"You weren't strong enough." Cole interrupted coldly. "His anger broke through your telepathic suggestions and alerted both the Cleaners and the Elders of his whereabouts. The Cleaners at least might have worked to my advantage but for the interference of the boy's Whitelighter! Because of your weakness, Potter has fulfilled part of his destiny and become a Paladin. Moreover, his partner has also joined him."

"There is still time to salvage---" Umbridge began.

"They alerted the Charmed Ones to my return!" Cole snapped. "All these unfortunate events are your doing. Your weakness has brought things to where they now stand, and you must pay!"

"P-please!" Umbridge cried. "I will go n-now if you wish and k-kill Potter for Your Lordship!"

"I have had enough of your bleating!" Cole snarled. Fire as dark as pitch flew from his hands and engulfed Dolores Umbridge. She had time for one quick scream and then she was gone. Cole relaxed on his throne, his eyes blazing with satisfaction. He turned toward the door, which opened the moment his gaze fell upon it. Draco Malfoy was pulled into the room by Cole's magic. Still under Cole's spell he prostrated himself before the throne.

"Get up." Cole said. Draco Malfoy rose to his feet.

"Is it done?" Malfoy asked.

"She will no longer be a problem." Cole replied.

"I will serve you more faithfully than Umbridge." Malfoy vowed.

"You had better." Cole warned.

"I'll start by taking revenge on Potter!" Malfoy snarled.

"No." Cole said.

"He killed my father!" Malfoy roared. "I won't let him---" But he was cut off in mid sentence as invisible claws wrapped around his throat and began slowly to squeeze.

"You don't want to suffer your mother's fate." Cole growled. "Yes, young fool," he said, seeing Draco's look of mingled horror and fury, "it was I who sent your mother to the Underworld. She too refused to obey my commands, and her fate was most unpleasant. Unless you wish to suffer a similar fate, you will obey me." Draco gasped for air as Cole gazed coolly at him.

"Yes," Malfoy finally wheezed, "I---swear!" Cole kept his invisible claws around the boy's throat for a few more seconds before finally releasing him. Draco collapsed onto the carpeted floor, his breath coming in short gasps.

"Remember." Was all Cole said.

"What do we do now?" Draco asked when at last he could speak.

"We wait." Cole said. "It's Christmas now. We'll let the fools enjoy their ridiculous holidays before we strike. With the festivities approaching, they won't even think of keeping their guard up. After the holidays they'll be relaxed. That's when we make our move."

"I still don't understand why you won't let me go after Potter." Draco said sullenly, though he was careful not to seem too angry. He had no desire to experience more of Cole's wrath if he could avoid it. "He's bound to be weak just now." Draco continued. "One Avada Kedavra and he'd be out of our way."

"Feel free to challenge the Charmed Ones if you wish." Cole replied dispassionately. "Just don't expect me to pay for the funeral."

"I can handle a couple mudblood Witches!" Draco sneered.

"Hold your tongue!" Cole snapped. "I've made my decision, so unless you want to join your mother in the Underworld you'll keep your mouth shut!" Malfoy gave Cole a murderous glare, but backed down after a moment.

"As you wish." He replied sullenly.

"I knew you'd see it my way." Cole said. "Now be gone!" Draco didn't make any further objections, but turned slowly and walked from the room. Cole let him go. The situation was not yet irretrievable, he knew. There was still time to set things right. Very soon now, there would be a reckoning, and when that day came, Potter, the Charmed Ones, and even that fool Malfoy would get what they deserved. The demon chuckled softly. It was only a matter of time.

Author's Note

Well, another chapter done. I figured it was time for a look into the mind of the enemy. Chapter 8 should be up soon, but we'll see.


	8. Coming to terms

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 8: Coming to Terms

It was about two weeks till Christmas. The Halliwell Manor was decorated for the approaching holiday, so much so that anyone passing by just had to swing back around for another look at all the colored lights. Leo Wyatt had spent hours putting them up, still able to slip back into his former role as the Charmed Ones' handyman with as much ease as you slipped into a well-worn pair of shoes. Everyone was looking forward eagerly to the holiday...well, almost everyone.

One among the members of the Halliwell household seemed unable to feel the pleasant anticipation that permeated the house. Since his kidnapping by Lucius Malfoy several weeks ago, Harry Potter had walled himself off from everyone and everything save his snowy owl. He couldn't understand how Phoebe, Paige and Piper could continue to care so deeply for him when he had almost gotten Paige killed. Had it not been for him, Paige would never have gone to Malfoy Manor. Even though she hadn't even been hurt, Harry still felt responsible for what could have happened. Even when he lay close beside Paige at night he couldn't find peace. He knew he shouldn't see her, yet the thought of giving her up was just as unbearable as the thought of any harm coming to her. It was this indecision as much as anything else that kept Harry from looking forward to Christmas.

Paige made her way upstairs to the room she shared with Harry. She'd been worried about him for a long time now, but she had an idea that she thought might help bring him out of his self-erected prison. He needed to understand that Paige had come after him willingly. She'd had a long talk with Aedrus, the only one among the Elders for whom any of the Charmed Ones had any real trust anymore. He had decided that perhaps it was time for Paige to intervene, and he had made a surprising but not unwelcome suggestion. Paige let her hand rest on the object in her pocket. She hoped Phoebe and Piper were too busy downstairs to wonder what she was up to, but this time it wasn't because of any possible disapproval. Instead, she wanted Harry to hear this from her directly. She took a moment to calm herself, then entered their room.

Harry wasn't quite sure exactly when Paige slipped into the room. One moment he was alone and the next she was there. He only registered her presence when he felt her arm slide around his shoulders. Her face was serious but gentle, and there was a small smile playing about her lips. For a long time neither of them spoke.

"You want to talk about it?" Paige asked after a while.

"It's my fault." Harry said numbly.

"What," Paige said, "that we know who our enemy is? That he won't be able to make any moves at least until after the holidays? That Darryl's finally starting to come to grips with his feelings?"

"you could have been killed." Harry replied.

"yeah," admitted Paige,"but you're forgetting one thing. I was risking my neck long before you came along." She smiled and continued. "I didn't go after you out of any obligation. I came after you because of the way I feel about you."

"What do you---" Harry began.

"I love you." Paige interrupted. "I'd suspected it for quite a while, but when that son-of-a-bitch Pettigrew attacked you I knew. That sort of thing has a way of clarifying feelings." Harry gazed at her in stunned amazement.

"Yeah." Paige agreed. "And y'know what? I'd do it again." She paused to let that sink in. Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out the small box she'd been carrying. She placed it in Harry's hand. His eyes widened as he began to see where this was leading. With trembling fingers he opened the box to find the simple gold band.

"It was the one your mom gave your dad." Paige explained. Harry gazed at the golden thing, not quite daring to touch it. This was the next thing to a holy artifact with him.

"So?" she asked after a moment. "Will you?" Harry sat there for a time, then flung his arms around her and hugged her. Paige returned the embrace and smiled as Harry rested his cheek against hers. After a time he pulled away.

"Yes," he said, "I will marry you." He paused and jokingly asked, "That was what you meant, wasn't it?" Paige kissed him full on the lips in response. It was then that Harry noticed that he too had a small box in his pocket. He didn't need to think hard to know its importance. He handed it to his fiance. Sure enough, the ring that James Potter had given to Lilly rested within. Paige took Harry's hand and slipped the ring she'dd given him onto the proper finger. He did the same for her.

"I have to admit I'm a little surprised by this." Harry said a little while later.

"I wanted to show you how I feel about you." Paige replied. "This was the best way."

"What do we tell the others?" Harry asked apprehensively.

"the truth." Paige replied.

"But---" Harry began.

"They've known it might come to this. I think Piper's hoping for this, to tell you the truth. She loves you almost as much as I do, and so does Pheebs."

Piper was worried about Harry. As Paige had said, she loved the young man. To see him so depressed after what had happened to him had hurt her deeply, especially when he'd begun to distance himself from everyone. Wyatt and Chris seemed to sense this and they became subdued. What worried Piper the most was the fact that even Paige hadn't been able to really get through to Harry. She'd spoken at length with her mother, grandmother and older sister, and all had told her that only time could heal Harry. But that didn't seem to be working. Piper knew that Harry's ordeal couldn't have been an easy one, especially on top of all he'd suffered through so far, but even so she worried.

Piper's private worrying session was interrupted by the appearance of Phoebe. A small smile was playing about her lips.

"You can quit worrying about Harry." she said. "Something's going to happen shortly that should bring him around."

"Did you have a premonition?" Piper asked.

"Yeah." Phoebe could barely contain her excitement.

"What did you see?" Piper demanded.

"Alas, I may not reveal that." Phoebe replied. "It shall be revealed to you at the proper time."

"Phoebe?" Piper said, a slight edge to her voice.

"Sorry," Phoebe replied, "my orders come from higher up."

Fortunately for piper, the "proper time" came a few minutes later, when Paige entered the kitchen, her arm around Harry's shoulders. They both wore identical smiles. Phoebe made a gesture at Paige's hand. Piper looked and noticed the simple gold band encircling her ring finger. Harry bore a similar ornament.

"Which one of you---" she began.

"I made the first move, if you must know." Paige replied. "I figured the best way to help bring him around was to show him just how I feel about him, and this was the best way to do that." Piper looked back and forth between the two of them.

"I don't know what to say." she said.

"Congratulations?" Phoebe suggested. Piper gave her a look. Then the full import of what she was seeing hit her. She seized first Harry and then Paige in a tight hug.

"I approve." she said after she'd released them. "We'll have to send for Grams."

"What for?" Paige asked.

"you don't think I'd miss out on my granddaughter's wedding?" Penny Halliwell's voice said as she materialized in the kitchen. "You couldn't pay me enough to keep me away."

"That goes for us too." Patty and Prue also appeared, followed closely by Lilly, James, Sirius and Cedric.

"Looks like this is going to be a family affair." Piper observed.

"I suppose you'll want to do it after this business with Belthezor is settled?" Penny asked.

"No." Paige said. Piper was surprised to hear a note of decision in her sister's voice. This wasn't Paige's usual impulsive self talking. She'd clearly thought long and hard about this.

"What?" Penny seemed surprised.

"We don't know for sure that we'll be around after that. The sooner we do it, the better." Penny considered.

"Now that's what I call true love." Sirius observed. "You two have my blessing." Lilly, James, Patty and Prue all nodded their agreement. Cedric also smiled. This was apparently good enough for Penny.

The ceremony was a simple one. Indeed, it was held that very same day. Aedrus officiated. after the couple had confirmed that they did in fact take each other as husband and wife, Aedrus performed the joining. As a part of the ceremony, Paige also took her birth name of Halliwell, finally embracing her true heritage.

"Oh," the Great Elder said after the ceremony was complete, "there are a couple people here who'd like to see the two of you." Paige and Harry moved into the foyer, where Paige's adopted parents were waiting. Harry sensed that, like Patty, Prue and Penny, these were spirits. Paige explained that she'd lost her foster parents in a car accident when she was eighteen. She'd blamed herself for that for years. The two spirits embraced their daughter, then Harry.

"You've come a long way." Mrs. Matthews said to Paige. "We're proud of you." Paige thanked them, her eyes brimming. Then they were practically bowled over by three new arrivals. Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and Cho Chang piled into the manor and surrounded the couple in a group hug. Even Cho didn't hold back, even though she and Harry had both had crushes on each other at one time.

"I told you you'd find someone!" Ron exclaimed. "You just needed to give it time."

A good while later after all the guests had departed, Harry and Paige nestled comfortably under the covers. Harry's eyes were drawn to his wife's thinly clad figure with undisguised longing.

"Well?" Paige said. "Aren't you going to make your move?" He hesitated just a second too long. Paige took matters into her own hands.

A few hours later they nestled close together in the darkness and simply savored the afterglow of their activity. Harry savored the smooth warmth of Paige's skin and the fragrance of her hair, a few strands of which were tickling his neck.

"I sure hope you enjoyed that as much as I did." he remarked. Paige responded to that with another kiss.

"I love you." Harry said after a while. The words were strange to him, yet they felt right.

"Love you too." Paige replied. So saying, they fell asleep in each others arms, secure in the knowledge that though there were most certainly dark and difficult times ahead, they would face them together.

Author's Note

Finally got Chapter 8 up! So why did it take so long, you're probably asking. First of all, I moved. Second, my computer's misbehaving again, so I'm having to borrow. I also had a long period of writer's block. I wasn't sure where I wanted to go with this, but I finally decided to have Paige make her move. With any luck the next chap won't be too long in coming.


	9. Something to Look Forward To

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 9: Something to look forward to

Paige lay awake and gazed at Harry's sleeping face. She lightly ran her fingers through his untidy hair and wondered how anybody could endure all the hardships Harry had endured and stay sane. All Paige knew for certain was that had it been her in Harry's shoes, she would almost certainly have snapped long before now. Noticing the smile on Harry's face, Paige guessed he must be reliving the last few hours. Paige had enjoyed those almost more than Harry had. It had been only their second time, the first having been on the night of their wedding. Paige pulled Harry close and he nestled against her, enjoying the feel of her skin and the faint scent of vanilla that clung to her.

Paige lightly kissed Harry awake and waited for him to take in the view of her unclad figure. When at last he'd given his eyes a good time he found her gaze and held it.

"You're up early." Harry observed.

"Now so are you." Paige agreed. "I've got to tell you something."

"What?" Harry asked, not at all anoyed at being awakened. Had it been anyone else he would have been, but Paige was different.

"I'm a little wary." Paige admitted. "You've only just started to open up to me again. I guess I'm worried this'll make you revert."

"I don't think you have to worry about that." Harry replied. "You've left me with no doubt that you're in this regardless of the consequences. Now I can relax and enjoy what we have."

"Well," Paige said, "we'll be welcoming a third member to our little family sometime next year." She'd reasoned that a bit of tact might be handled better than simply blurting it out. Harry's eyes widened.

"You're---" he paused, then blurted, "pregnant?"

"I'm almost positive." Paige replied.

"But it's only been a week since we---y'know." Harry replied. "How could you know so soon?"

"I guess Whitelighters have sharper senses than ordinary mortals, and I am half Whitelighter." Paige replied. Curious, Harry took Paige's hand in his and allowed his Paladin's senses to brush against her spirit. Sure enough, he felt the life within her.

"You're right." he agreed. Then the full realization sank in and he pulled Paige into a tight embrace. She responded emphatically.

"You're not going to freak out?" Paige asked.

"Why would I?" Harry asked.

"Because," Paige replied, "this would be---how should I put this---one more person you have to protect from the ones who are out to kill you.."

"I take it you want to go through with this?" Harry asked.

"Damn right." Paige replied.

"So do I." Harry replied.

"So why so excited?" Paige asked. "Not that I'm complaining or anything, but if I'd told you this a few weeks ago you'd have had a heart attack or something."

"It's you." Harry replied. "You've had loads of chances to just turn away from me and save yourself, but you never did. That should have made it clear to me, but it took your proposal to really make me see it. I'm not about to give you up after that." He paused. "Besides," he continued, "this is just something else to look forward to." He paused again and added, "Besides, I've always promised myself that if I ever had a family I would do my best to give them the love I never got from my aunt and uncle. This gives me that chance." Paige considered these words and smiled.

"Then we'll just have to work together to protect this child." she said. "You've got me, and we've got Piper and the others for support." Harry smiled.

"Are you sure Piper won't be mad?" he asked.

"Maybe right at first," Paige admitted, "but if we tell her now it'll be better than if we wait. Trust me, I know. If we wait and Piper finds out when I start showing---well you can probably guess. She'll be more open to the idea if we tell her now."

"You're probably right." Harry agreed.

Piper's reaction to the news of Paige's pregnancy was surprising. Though she did at first express concerns about the couple's feelings on the matter, she relaxed a great deal once she was convinced that Paige and Harry were in agreement on what they wanted to do.

"I just wanted to be sure you two want the same thing. Phoebe and I will help you out however we can no matter what you decide to do."

"We're having this child." Paige replied. "I don't care if we have to take on the whole Underworld, but we'll keep this child safe."

"That's the mark of a good mother." Leo remarked from the doorway. "I know Piper would do anything to protect Wyatt and Chris and I'd be right there with her."

"I don't think we need to worry." Piper agreed. "This kid's going to be lucky to have Harry for a dad."

"I wonder if it'll be a boy or a girl." said Piper.

"Guess we'll wait and see." Leo replied. "Personally, I hope it's a girl. We need more of those around here."

"We'll just have to wait and see." Piper agreed.

Author's Note

Yeah, it's a relatively short chapter, but I promise the next one will be longer. I just wanted to give Harry and Paige something more to look forward to.


	10. A Charmed Christmas

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 10: A Charmed Christmas

Christmas Eve dawned crisp and cold. On the outside, the Halliwell Manor was aglow with multicolored Christmas lights that Leo had spent hours putting up. The inside was just as colorful, with all manner of ornaments decorating the walls and the sizeable tree in the living room. And even with the threat of a demon attack on the horizon, the atmosphere inside the house was one of pleasant anticipation. The Charmed Ones would have this time of peace to spend with those they loved, and it was that, more than anything, that made it possible for them to look forward to Christmas. Even Harry was greatly looking forward to it, not the least because of the impending birth of his and Paige's first child.

Harry was just snuggling closer to Paige when there came a commotion from downstairs.

"Uh---Darryl?" Leo said.

"Quiet." Darryl replied irritably. He was in the act of attempting to telekinetically maneuver a large cyramic Santa Claus into a corner near the Christmas tree. He'd discovered quite by accident that he had a nack for Telekinesis. The incident had occurred at Magic School during a rather boring lecture on Darklighters. On the verge of dozing off, Darryl had inadvertently levitated Sigmund's lecture notes to the ceiling. Since that day he'd been trying to gain more control over his new poer.

"Darryl?" Leo said, his tone a bit more urgent. "You might not want---" Darryl glared at Leo, but in that instant his concentration was broken. The large statue came crashing down...on Darryl's poor unsuspecting right foot. It was that crash and Darryl's subsequent howl of pain that brought Paige and Harry running, not to mention the rest of the family.

"What is going on in here?" Piper demanded. She had quite obviously been in the shower when the commotion had started. Her long brown hair was quite wet, and her upper half was completely unclad. unfortunately for her, the particular shorts she'd thrown on at the sound of the racket downstairs were particularly revealing.

"uh Piper?" Leo pointed delicately at his wife's bare skin, but she didn't seem to notice. She kept glaring at Darryl who, at the sight of an almost totally naked Piper, had fallen into a stupified silence.

"I'm waiting." Piper said primly.

"Let's just say Darryl was practicing Telekinesis again." Leo explained. "Unfortunately the object he was trying to move turned out to be a wee bit too heavy."

"And here I am thinking it was some demon!" Piper snapped. "I interrupt a nice hot shower thinking the house is being attacked and it's only Darryl fooling around with his powers!"

"Nice view." Darryl remarked without thinking. Piper moved right up in front of him, her eyes flashing.

"And what, pray tell, was that?" she demanded in a dangerously quiet voice.

"Uh---n-nothing." Darryl stammered.

"He said something about how he likes the uh--view." Harry supplied helpfully.

"You stay out of this, young man." Piper warned. "And don't let Paige catch you staring at another woman!" Harry blushed.

"Y'know," Paige remarked mildly, "It's kinda hard not to stare. You are almost completely naked, or have you forgotten that?" Piper glared at her youngest sister and stalked out of the living room.

"My my," observed Phoebe dryly, "aren't we cheerful today?"

"Would you like me to remove that statue or were you planning to stand there with it all day?" Leo asked mildly. Darryl gave him a murderous glare. Grinning to himself, Leo magicked the statue off Darryl's foot and set it in the spot Darryl had originally been aiming for.

"We're not normally supposed to do this seeing as it wasn't a Demonic attack," Leo said, "but---"

Christmas day dawned just as bright and cold as Christmas Eve. Harry was awakened by Paige, who employed the flawless tactic of kissing her husband awake.

"Merry Christmas to you too." Harry said, pulling Paige closer to him.

"At least Darryl didn't drop anymore Santa Clauses on his feet this morning." Paige remarked. "It would ruin the mood."

"What mood are we talking about?" Harry asked.

"The one where I give you the first part of your Christmas present." Paige replied.

A few hours later after they'd had their fun and showered, the couple made their way downstairs to the living room. The rest of the family had already gathered around the tree.

"About time!" Darryl remarked. "I swear I could almost feel my hair turning gray."

"Oh stop it." his wife Sheila teased. "I'd imagine Paige wanted to give Harry her present in private." Several eyebrows rose at that comment, but thankfully there was no follow-up.

Harry hadn't known what to expect as far as his first Christmas with the Halliwells, but it wasn't what he actually got. For starters, Phoebe had given him a copy of The Silmarillion, the prehistory to The Lord of the Rings.

"It's a little difficult to get into if you haven't read Tolkien for a while," she admitted, "but once you do it's actuallt pretty interesting." Obviously taking a leaf out of Phoebe's book, Darryl had given him Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth. Piper and Leo had gone in together to buy Harry his own Lord of the Rings trilogy on DVD.

"These are the extended editions." Leo explained. "We already have those but we didn't figure your aunt and uncle ever let you start your own movie collection. Seeing as how you liked the Lord of the Rings we figured you could start your collection with those three."

"Thanks." Harry replied sincerely.

Presents from Harry's other friends arrived later that same day. Ron gave Harry a set of real Quidditch balls and also sent along Mrs. Weasley's usual sweater. There was also one for Paige in the package. Ron, who had of course met Paige several times, was able to give his mother a good idea of the colors Paige liked to wear. Though surprised that a total stranger should want to give her any kind of gift, Paige was just as obviously happy with it. Mrs. Weasley also sent a large tin of her homemade fudge, which got excellent reviews from everyone.

Taking a leaf out of Ron's book, Hermione also sent a small gift for Paige. Harry opened Hermione's present to find a book on American Quidditchh teams and a silver amulet. Curious, Harry read Hermione's letter and learned that the amulet was Paige's gift.

"your friend Aedrus gave it to me and asked me to make sure Paige gets it." Harry examined the amulet and discovered it had an engraving of a lightning bolt on its front face. Paige was delighted with the amulet, though she admitted she was a little annoyed at not being given an explanation. Even so, the medallion went about her neck immediately.

The most surprising of Harry's gifts was the one from Cho Chang. It consisted of a photograph of him and Paige on the night of their wedding. It was an ordinary Muggle photo, but Cho had somehow charmed it so that it moved like any Wizarding picture. There was also an article taken from the Daily Profit. When Harry saw the name of the reporter who had written the article, his first inclination was not to read it, but Cho's letter was very reassuring. So Harry opened the paper and began to read.

"The Boy who Lived Married at Last

It seems that good things really do come to those who endure great hardship, writes Rita Skeeter, Daily Profit Reporter. On Monday last, Harry Potter, the Boy who Lived, officially married Miss Paige Matthews, an American witch from the city of San Francisco, California. Startling information recently came to light with regard to Miss Matthews. The Daily Profit can exclusively reveal that Paige Matthews is none other than one of the legendary Charmed Ones, a team of three sister witches who protect the innocent from the demons who walk among us. Respecting the couple's likely wish for privacy, no interviews will yet be conducted. However the general opinion seems to be that Mr. Potter is extremely lucky to have Paige Matthews for a wife, as her reputation suggests that she is a very courageous and kind person who will not hesitate to risk everything to stand beside those she loves." Harry stared at the article in amazement. Though Rita Skeeter had changed a great deal since the war against Voldemort, Harry would never have expected her to write an article that was completely free of horrible lies and speculations. Then again, she was one of those who had barely escaped Voldemort with her life, and very few people can have a near death experience and not be changed by it.

That night the family sat down for an excellent Christmas dinner. Piper had, in Harry's opinion at least, outdone herself in the kitchen. He helped himself to a bit of everything. The conversation was pleasant and there was much laughter. The main topic seemed to be Harry and Paige's child. Phoebe hoped that it would be a girl, since they needed more of those around the house. Inspector Sheridan, who had "mysteriously" forgotten that she had any reason to be suspicious of the Halliwells, had become quite a good friend of the family and had joined the gathering at Piper's invitation. She said she had a feeling it might be twins.

"God I hope not." Piper remarked. Paige, however, smiled at the idea. none of the others knew that she had already chosen names for the child, whatever its gender and whether or not it turned out to be twins. These were very special names though, and Paige had no intention of spilling the beans until the time was right.

Much later, Harry and Paige nestled close in the velvety darkness of their room. Harry, full of food, was pleasantly drowsy. Paige also had a pleasant smile playing across her full lips.

"So," she said, "how was your Christmas?"

"Great." replied Harry. "How about yours?"

"I doubt it could've been much better." was Paige's reply. Then she sobered a bit. "I had a talk with our friend the Elder."

"What did he have to say?" Harry asked.

"He told me about that amulet." Paige replied. "It's a Paladin's amulet." Harry gaped.

"You're going to become a---"

"You don't think I'm just going to let you and Darryl fight alone, do you?" Paige asked.

"I'm just a little surprised is all." Harry replied. "You're not at all worried about the baby?"

"I am," Paige admitted, "but I've got the feeling you boys are going to need me before this is all over."

"Knowing me," Harry admitted with a slight smile, "you're probably right. It's like I told Ron on the train to school when I was thirteen. I don't go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds me."

"There's something else." Paige said. "Cole's going to make his move sometime after New Year's."

"That's not all that far off." Harry observed.

"No," Paige agreed, "but we at least have this time to prepare. That means that however much we both might want to spend all our time getting into mischief, we really should train up as much as we can."

"You'll need to learn how to fight hand to hand." Harry observed. He paused and then plunged ahead. "I'll have you know I don't entirely agree with this."

"Oh?" Paige asked. "Are you thinking I might get myself killed and you'll survive?"

"There is that." Harry admitted.

"Look at the other side of the coin." Paige pointed out. "Let's say you don't survive and I do. We know one thing for sure, and it's that only your power can vanquish Cole for good, especially if he's receiving aid from someone else. If you die, it's all over. Would you want our kids to grow up in that future?"

"You've made your point." Harry finally replied. "Just be careful, all right?"

"I could say the same to you." Paige replied. They both smiled at that thought. So it was that secure in the knowledge that they would be together whatever came their way, they drifted into contented sleep.

Author's Note

First of all I want to say sorry for the long delay. I had a seasonal job and then some writer's block. Well, now here's another chapter. You'll also notice I've been polishing up this fic quite a bit. While I know some of you may not like these changes, I just wasn't quite satisfied with it as it was. I think I've got it the way I want it now, but we'll see. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter.


	11. The Enemy Unmasked

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Author's Note

Sorry it's been so long! At long last, here's a new chapter. There's a twist at the end...

Chapter 11: The enemy Unmasked

Harry nestled close to Paige in the velvety blackness of their room. He had been awoken by a very vivid dream, the details of which shall not be revealed lest they offend delicate sensibilities. About all that shall be revealed was that it involved Paige rather intimately. Harry glanced over at his love, noting the rather revealing nightdress she wore. Looking at Paige reminded Harry of the child they were expecting, even though she hadn't yet started showing any visible signs of her condition.

As for Paige, she lay close beside Harry and watched him watch her. She thought she would allow Harry to continue to think she was asleep for just a little longer before she made her move. She could get quite affectionate in the mornings sometimes and she was in one of those moods now...until her senses began to warn her of danger.

Harry felt his senses prickle with the approach of danger and was out of bed in a flash. Before he thought to wake Paige and warn her, she was at his side. It appeared they were about to find out if the intense training they'd undergone since just after Christmas would pay off.

"He's here." Harry whispered.

"We knew he was going to make his move soon." Paige pointed out.

"But not that he would come himself." Harry disagreed.

"We only knew he was going to attack after the holidays." Paige pointed out. "We didn't know what form it was going to take."

"Let's go" Darryl's voice urged in the silence of their minds. "I think I know who his target's going to be"

As Darryl had suspected, the black shadowy figure stood just outside the nursery in Piper's room, red eyes gleaming as they found Harry's.

"I told you you and I would meet again." the familiar voice remarked. "You didn't think I'd give up just because Paige came and rescued you, did you" A trace of sardonic amusement infused the voice as Cole continued. "You know, you must not be all that powerful if you need to be rescued by a girl." Harry went livid.

"You sorry bastard" he roared, drawing his blade.

"Come on" Cole challenged. "Attack me! I dare you" Harry lunged forward but Paige caught his arm and pulled him back.

"Did you happen to se that" she demanded, indicating the strange barrior shimmering about the demon. Harry's eyes widened as he realized what could have happened.

"I've never seen anything like it." he admitted.

"'Course not." Cole agreed. "Did you think I'd be dumb enough to use a power you were familiar with? I mean come on! That'd basically be saying here I am! Please kill me"

"Let's get this over with" Darryl interrupted impatiently. "You're outnumbered three to one"

"One" Cole replied. "You can come out now, Malfoy." The familiar figure emerged from the nursery with Chris in his arms.

"Should I kill him right here" Malfoy asked.

"Let's let them watch." agreed Cole.

"Put him down." Paige ordered, her tone more venomous than Harry had ever heard it.

"I wouldn't try anything, Mudblood." Malfoy warned. "You wouldn't want to hurt the little brat, now would you"

"He's got a point." Cole observed. "And while he's dealing with that, I think we're going to have a little chat." Darryl sprinted across the room toward Malfoy, silently summoning his sword as he moved. But he never reached his target. Malfoy made a dismissive gesture and Darryl was blasted off his feet, his sword flying from his hand.

"That takes care of that." he remarked.

"Very good." Cole complimented. "You've made my job a whole lot easier. I might let you have that Chang girl after all." Malfoy's eyes filled with lust at that, but then he spotted Paige.

"Give her to me instead." he disagreed.

"You'd take a-how did you put it-a Mudblood over Chang" Cole seemed startled.

"I could use her power." Malfoy replied. "Then again she is quite attractive. Having my way with her would be a fun distraction."

"You can have her if you can manage to subdue her." Cole replied offhandedly. "Just don't expect me to help you." Paige, who had been listening to this from where she stood, saw the way Malfoy's eyes darted to her shapely legs and was filled with fury.

"Is Potter the only one allowed to do that" Malfoy sneered. "My my Miss Matthews, you have the worst taste in men"

"If you come a step closer I swear I'll kill you." Paige warned.

"She actually dares to defy me" Malfoy laughed. "I think it's time for a lesson in humility."

Harry lunged for Malfoy in rage but was knocked back by an energy barrier as Cole strode over to him.

"I don't think so." he remarked. "It's just you and me this time."

"You'll pay for this" Harry roared.

"Sorry" replied Cole sarcastically"I forgot my wallet this morning. Would a check be Ok" He paused and then seemed to remember something. "Oops" he remarked"forgot my checkbook today too. My memory's not what it used to be, you know." Harry didn't even have a chance to reply before Cole's black sword appeared in his hands. The enchanted blade swished through the air and Harry barely had time to dodge. In the same instant his armor materialized around him and he felt the reassuring weight of his sword in his hand. Cole's aura shimmered briefly, outfitting him in jet black armor.

"Feel like dueling a Dark Paladin before breakfast" Cole asked casually. Not waiting for a reply, he launched another attack.

Whatever his faults, Cole Turner was definitely not a clumsy swordsman. Though the weapon was different from what he would have used in his demon form, he still handled it with obvious skill. Harry, skilled as he was, soon realized he was up against a deadly opponent who could probably crush him with a single blow if he made just one mistake. He managed to block or avoid most of Cole's attacks and was thankful his enchanted armor could soften those blows he didn't manage to avoid. Even so, Harry's armor was soon dented in many places.

"Magic armor doesn't work quite as well when you're dealing with an enchanted blade." Cole remarked as though he and Harry were simply involved in a training exercise. The ferocity of his attacks stated plainly that this was anything but. His next blow almost threw Harry off balance. It was only through blind luck that he managed to keep his feet, knowing that if he fell he would be finished. Even though his armor was enchanted so it was not as heavy as ordinary armor would have been, its weight would still have been enough to hamper his efforts to rise.

It was when Harry's sword found an opening in Cole's defenses that he made his mistake. His aim was true, but his attack was badly timed. Cole's blade slashed across Harry's shoulder even as Harry's blade pierced Cole's armor. Cole's eyes widened as the blade went right through his shoulder. For a moment he stood gaping at the blade protruding from his sword arm, then, with a cry of rage and pain he unleashed a wave of energy that threw Harry across the room and left him unconscious. The last thing Harry saw was Cole shimmering into his true Demonic form.

Paige watched Malfoy advance and knew she would be finished if she didn't act soon. The young man was eyeing her shapely figure with a mix of undisguised lust, hate and contempt. He would have his way with her and then kill her.

"I don't think anyone's going to be coming to your rescue anytime soon." Malfoy sneered. "Both Piper and Phoebe are out of the house. That's not our doing but it did work to our advantage. Think how they'll react when they find the ravaged body of their half-sister. Then again, I get the impression they don't really love you." Paige's face went white with a mix of rage and disbelief.

"You lie." she replied, her voice deadly quiet and trembling with hate. "You lie just like that rat you sent here to bring Harry to you."

"Wormtail was expendable." Malfoy remarked mildly. "You, on the other hand, have the potential to provide me with hours and hours of amusement, and I don't just mean in the bedroom. I never thought I'd want a Mudblood so badly, but even the sight of you drives me crazy. That's why I'm going to indulge myself a little before I kill you."

"If you even lay a finger on me you'll regret it." Paige spat. Malfoy teasingly laid a finger on Paige's smooth cheek. She reacted instantly, her fist flying out to strike Malfoy square on the jaw. Malfoy's eyes widened in stunned amazement. Then he pulled himself together.

"Looks like having my way with you isn't going to be quite as easy as I thought." he observed. He then lunged for Paige and pinned her arms at her sides with enchanted cords. He reached for her dress and then his eyes widened in shock.

"What's this" he demanded. Paige felt him probing her very spirit as Harry had once done and knew he was going to discover her secret.

"So" he sneered"Potter's already had his way with you. In that case you're not worth my time. There's no way I'm bedding with someone Potter's been using for a repository for his mongrel seed." Malfoy's disparaging remarks about Harry finally caused Paige to snap. Her anger blazed forth in waves of lightning that hammered into Malfoy but didn't so much as rock him backward. About all the attack did do aside from drain Paige's energy was to burn away the bonds Malfoy had placed on her. Malfoy responded with a Cruciatus Curse. The agony was beyond anything Paige had ever known before. The torture only stopped briefly when Malfoy noticed Darryl trying to stagger to his feet and sent a wave of energy at the Paladin to keep him from coming to Paige's rescue.

It was Cole's cry of rage and pain that brought an abrupt end to Paige's torment. Malfoy's eyes widened in shock as he saw Potter's sword penetrate his master's shoulder. Cole's sword fell from nerveless fingers even as Potter was blasted across the bedroom to sprawl half on Piper's bed and half off. Then Malfoy saw the one thing he feared most in all the world. His master's human form seemed to explode into the demon who had tortured Draco into submission after the exiling of his mother to the Underworld. The demon's eyes found Draco's and there was a deadly promise in them.

Paige saw Cole transform into his Demonic self and was amazed to see Malfoy's eyes come alive with terror. He had locked Chris in a magical barrier while he'd been torturing Paige, but now he dissolved the shield and almost shoved Chris into Paige's arms.

"Take him and get out of here" he cried.

"What are you" Paige demanded.

"Do you want him to get him" Malfoy's tone was almost panicky. Paige quickly Orbed out with Chris. She left him in Wyatt's care, urging him to protect his baby brother at any cost. The urgency in his Auntie Paige's voice must have reached him, for his shield sprang to life around himself and Chris. Satisfied that Chris had at least some protection, Paige Orbed back into Piper's bedroom. The sight that greeted her caused her to stop dead in her tracks.

"Traitor" Belthezor was roaring at Draco. He had Draco hovering off the floor and the invisible vicelike tallons were tightening inexorably around the young man's throat. Malfoy's eyes were blazing with defiance.

"I would have done it sooner or later" he spat. "You'll pay for what you did to my parents! That's why I let her take the boy"

"Your mother's fate will seem pleasant to the one that awaits you now." Belthezor replied. "Barbas is even now burning in the darkest pit of the Underworld, and I'd be surprised if he wouldn't be delighted to have someone to share in his misery. That honor shall be yours."

"Give the traitor to me" came a new voice. Paige saw a strange portal shimmer into existence. Within it, Barbas writhed in torment as flames seared his entire being. His eyes found Malfoy's and filled with hunger.

"I think I will." Cole remarked lazily. "Normally I'd handle it myself but I have Potter to play with, so the ferret boy is all" He never got to finish. Draco had somehow drawn a concealed knife from somewhere in his clothes and now plunged the poisoned blade into Belthezor's unsuspecting left eye. The scream that burst from the demon's lips was one of pure agony and hate. He hurled Malfoy toward the portal, but Paige was already moving. She had no love for Malfoy, but he had just done something whose bravery - or stupidity, could not go unrewarded. He had also saved her nephews' lives even if he hadn't originally intended to. She used her magic to call Malfoy to her and laid his shaking form on the bed next to Harry. Barbas' burning eyes found hers and the hatred in them was unmistakable.

"You've been a constant source of irritation, you know." he spat. "Maybe I should take you instead of Ferret Boy." Paige's hands came up and, instead of the lightning she had used on Draco earlier, white light erupted from her to engulf the portal.

"That's impossible" Barbas and Belthezor roared together.

"Obviously not." Paige remarked as her magic began to seal the portal.

"You don't have that power" Barbas almost screamed. "No mortal does" Whatever he might have said was lost as the portal faded from existence. Belthezor, his wounded eye oozing smoke rather than blood, was still dazed from his unexpected injury. He stood gaping at Paige in a mix of disbelief and hatred.

"You can't vanquish me" he spat. "Only Potter could have done that and he's finished"

"Ah" Paige replied"but maybe not. Don't ask me how I know, but somehow I get the feeling that now that "Potter" has managed to hurt you you're vulnerable."

"You'll learn your mistake soon enough" Cole retorted. "Go ahead! Try and kill me"

"Do you think I'd be stupid enough to attack you bare-handed" Paige asked.

"You should save that anger for someone who deserves it." Cole sneered. "how about those sisters of yours? They hate you after all. They've hated you since you came into their lives and replaced Prue. They treated you like crap because of that." Paige went white again as the demon's words hit home. Did Piper and Phoebe really hate her? Was she just a replacement for Prue? The questions swirled around inside her head as her anger began to build. And then a voice intruded on her chaotic thoughts, and though Paige had only heard it a few times she instantly recognized it.

"Are you about finished with all that" Prue asked, her tone one of extreme boredom.

"Prue" Paige asked silently.

"No" Prue replied sarcastically"it's Laura Bush. Who did you think it was"

"What do you" Paige began.

"You do realize, don't you, that you're giving Belthezor the very thing he wants"

"What" Paige demanded.

"Anger." Prue replied rather impatiently. "He's using your anger to try to turn you. If you attack him in the state you're in you'll be his in no time."

"But Piper" Paige began desperately.

"She's not the first to make that mistake." Prue replied, and Paige was surprised to hear regret in her voice. "I didn't tell Phoebe and Piper I loved them nearly as often as I should have. We were all guilty of that."

"But do they" Paige began.

"Of course not." Prue replied. "But you have to admit you did just come out of nowhere not long after I-left. They may have been angry but they never hated you and they still don't." She paused and added"Neither do I, so you can quit worrying about that." Paige considered her sister's words and, in a split second, made her decision. She drew in a deep breath and allowed her anger to fade. If anger was what Belthezor needed, she couldn't afford to give it to him, especially over this. In the next instant her medallion flared white and she was instantly encased in light, silver armor not unlike Harry's. Several weapons materialized on her as well, each one appearing to have been crafted specifically for her. At her right hip hung a slender rapier, while at her left hung a silver mace. She also had a silver bow strapped to her back and a quiver of silver arrows at her left shoulder. Paige's first thought was her rapier, but she discounted that, knowing the mace would give her a little more space to work with. When she pulled it out of its harness she felt a smile spread across her face. The weapon's weight was perfect as she hefted it experimentally. She looked across the room at Belthezor and saw that his good eye had widened in shock.

"How is this possible" he demanded.

"The same way this is." Paige replied. She raised her arm and let the mace fall squarely on the blade of Belthezor's sword, which the demon must have retrieved earlier. The blade shattered under the attack and Belthezor's eyes widened in dismay. Paige raised the mace one last time and brought it crashing down squarely in the center of the demon's massive chest.

"Look what you've done you fool" he almost screamed. Instantly he stiffened as his aura began to fluctuate wildly. He cried out in agony as something within his aura struggled to free itself.Then the energy wripped apart as a wave of green light erupted from Belthezor's shattered spirit. Paige's eyes widened in shock as the demon resumed his human form and collapsed to the floor.

"You have no idea what you've done." he spat at her, his lips red with blood. "You've set them free! your torment at my hands would have been nothing to what awaits you now you idiot" Cole drew one final breath and went still. In the instant his life left it, his body dissolved into sparks and faded into nothing.

Meanwhile, the green energy had coalesced into a human form. He gazed across at Paige almost with regret.

"I'm sorry" he said"that we couldn't have met at the appointed time. We really aren't evil, you know. In fact we can offer you a life free of it."

"You've been torturing an innocent for years." Paige retorted.

"That" the man asked. "That wasn't us. That was merely our instrument. Tom Riddle was, we now realize, unfit for our plans even as Belthezor was. Even Avatars make mistakes once in a while."

"You." Harry whispered. "You're the one that's been calling to me." Paige glanced sharply at Harry, but his eyes were still closed.

"Indeed." the Avatar replied. "We meet in the flesh at last."

"You offered me a world of peace." Harry said, his tone almost dreamy.

"A world where you'll no longer have to put up with the "famous Harry Potter" nonsense." the Avatar agreed. "A world where you and Paige can raise your child in peace, without the constant threat of demon attacks."

"You can't listen to him" the scream came seemingly from out of nowhere as Harry's friend Cho Chang suddenly materialized in the room. The Avatar looked up sharply as Cho appeared.

"I don't recall inviting you into this conversation, Miss Chang." he said, his voice suddenly very cold.

"You have no control over me, Alpha" Cho snapped. "Get out of here before the Charmed Ones return." Avatar Alpha gave Cho a warning look and then turned back to Paige and Harry.

"We will understand if you decide you need time to consider our offer." he said. "We ask one favor however. Give Malfoy to us."

"You used him as a pawn in your sick game." Paige replied. "It'll be his own people who decide his fate, not you."

"You walk on thin ice, Miss Matthews." Alpha warned. "We would much rather you joined us willingly, but we will take steps if we deem it necessary. Give the boy to us."

"Come and take him." Paige challenged. "All that's between you and him is me, a mere woman. I should be easy to get out of your way." She hefted the mace she still held, its head glowing with a silver aura.

"Are you insane" Cho cried. But the Avatar appeared highly disconcerted. He seemed unable or unwilling to attack Paige. His gaze shifted from Paige to Malfoy and then he shook his head.

"No matter." he finally said. "Malfoy will be ours in the end." With those words, he vanished.

"That was just about the stupidest thing you could have done." Cho observed.

"Do you mind" Paige snapped. "You could have come a few minutes earlier, you know. You might have spared us all a lot of trouble"

Piper returned home a few minutes later. She sensed that something somewhere in the house wasn't right and hurried up to check on Wyatt and Chris. She found them both in Wyatt's room, both unharmed. In fact, they were actually playing together when Piper entered the room. They were using their powers to mamove building blocks. At first they just moved them around in no particular order, laughing all the while. Then Wyatt began building a fort and, after a moment, Chris pitched in as well. Piper noticed that Wyatt no longer seemed to mind his brother's intrusion. In fact, he actually began showing Chris how the job was done. Piper smiled and moved over to sit on the floor near her sons. Seeing her, they both abandoned their game and came over to her. Piper gathered them into her arms and hugged them close.

"Are they all right" Paige's voice asked from the doorway. She sounded shaken. Piper set the two boys down, told them to be good and moved to her sister's side.

"They're fine." she said. "What happened here"

"Uh-nothing." Paige replied much too quickly. Piper gave her a warning look. Paige finally nodded in defeat.

"Not here." she murmured. She led the way downstairs to the kitchen.

"What is going on" Piper demanded once they were in the kitchen.

"We had a little excitement while you were gone." Paige explained. "Belthezor made his move this morning." Piper's face paled.

"Who did he send" she finally asked.

"He came here himself." Paige replied. "He brought Malfoy with him."

"Did you" Piper began, her mind still whirling with the shocking news Paige had just given her.

"We fought him." Paige replied. "He put Darryl out of commission in the first five minutes or so."

"Is Darryl" Piper began, afraid of what she was about to hear.

"I haven't quite decided yet." Darryl replied from the doorway. He was leaning heavily on Cho's arm as they moved into the kitchen. "I sure as hell feel dead if that's what you're wondering." Piper stood in shock at hearing Darryl's words, then sank into a chair.

"I'm assuming Belthezor escaped then." she finally said.

"No." Paige replied somberly. "I-I killed him."

"But only Harry" Piper began.

"Harry managed to wound him." Paige agreed. "That was right about the same time Cole stabbed him. Apparently that one wound made him vulnerable, so I became a Paladin and finished the job."

"What" Piper almost screamed.

"I think you may have made a mistake." Darryl remarked in an amused tone as Cho helped him to a chair as far from Piper as they could get. They were both glad that they were currently not the target of Piper's emotions.

"I guess that was my trial." Paige replied. "I had to prove myself worthy of becoming a"

"How can you sit here when you've just lost your husband" Piper demanded.

"He's still alive." Cho replied. "He's very lucky if you want my opinion. That blade barely missed his heart. We just have to find a way to draw the poison from his system." Piper sank her face into her hands.

"Why does everybody have to complicate everything" she cried. "Will somebody please tell me what's going on"

"I just did." Paige replied. Darryl gave her a warning look and then related as much of the story as he was conscious for. Paige continued from where Darryl left off, finishing with how she had called her armor and finished Belthezor off.

"I admit I wasn't sure if he'd be vulnerable" she said"but we were out of options. I had to do something."

"So it's all over" Piper asked.

"No." Paige replied after a moment. "Darryl once said he sensed a power in Cole other than his own and we figured he was getting help from someone else. We were right. They decided to make their presence known when Cole died."

"They call themselves the Avatars." Cho explained. "They aren't minions of the Underworld. They're agents of Chaos."

"But they're evil" Piper supplied.

"Not in the way you're thinking of." Cho replied. "They aren't demons, but they are a threat to everything we hold dear. They ruled this world thousands of years ago. They tricked the mortal races into accepting them by offering them a paradise beyond good and evil."

"There's nothing wrong with that." Piper pointed out. "I'd give anything to have a demon-free life."

"That's precisely why they would come to you." Cho explained. "They would use your desire for peace as a way of gaining control over you without resort to force."

"What is wrong with a demon-free world" Piper almost snapped.

"Nothing" Cho exclaimed. "But you must understand that neither good nor evil can exist without the other. Good and evil are opposite sides of the same coin. They are the forces that keep the universe in balance. The Avatars are a threat because they seek to destroy that"

"What's so wrong with letting them rid the world of demons" Piper asked. "If one of them was to come to me right now they'd have my support. The last thing I want is for my children to grow up fearing that demons are going to come after them at any second."

"You'd be a fool if you did." Cho replied. Piper's face paled with anger and she rose to her feet.

"Look Missy" she began"I don't know who you think you" but Cho cut her off.

"Would you sacrifice your freedom of will in exchange for a demon-free world" Cho asked quietly. Piper's eyes widened in shock at the question.

"What do you mean" she asked.

"Would you sacrifice the very thing that makes humans unique in exchange for a paradise" Cho replied. "That's the price the Avatars ask for this paradise of theirs. In exchange for their perfect world they force humans to surrender the very thing that makes them human. Your "perfect world" would come at the expense of your ability to decide your own fate. The Avatars would make that decision for you." Piper's face had gone pale at Cho's words.

"How can" she began.

"That isn't even the worst of it." Cho interrupted. "This paradise is only maintained because anybody who creates conflict of any sort is basically killed. The Avatars remove them from the picture and make their loved ones think they died" Piper's eyes widened in shock. She shook her head vehemently.

"I don't believe you" she cried. Cho reached across the table and seized her hands, locking eyes with her at the same moment. Piper stiffened as Cho's power flared through her. Visions of people simply vanishing from the world filled her mind, while their loved ones practically ignored them. After only a few moments she tore free of Cho and sank back against the back of her chair, tears of horror streaming from her eyes.

"How do you know this" she finally asked in a broken voice. There was a tightening around Cho's eyes.

"Because I used to be one of them." she almost whispered. "I was there during the Avatars' first reign and a part of me knew that what they were doing was wrong. It was I who showed a select few humans the hidden truth behind their so-called paradise. I showed them how to make the potion that vanquishes Avatars."

"you betrayed them." Piper breathed.

"I had to stop them." Cho replied. "I'm sure they knew I had betrayed them, so I went into hiding before the battle. I managed to separate myself enough from the Collective so that I would not be detected, but I knew they would eventually return and that when they did they might be able to track me. I took mortal form twenty-five years ago to watch over the one who would possess the power to vanquish the Avatars for good."

"Harry." Paige breathed.

"Yes." Cho agreed. "But the Avatars have been calling to his deepest desire for years. Ironically if it hadn't been for Voldemort, Harry would have been theirs long before now. As it is, they can still claim him if we don't hurry. They made a mistake that's given us our only chance, and we have to take it"

Phoebe returned a few minutes later, and it was then that Paige decided to ask the question that Cole had raised in her mind. Cho had departed, presumably to find a place where she might possibly be safe from the Avatars' vengeance. None of the Halliwells were particularly optimistic about her chances.

"What is it" Piper asked, clearly expecting more bad news and just as clearly not in the mood for it.

"I need to ask you something." Paige replied.

"What" Phoebe asked, clearly nonplussed by her sisters' behavior.

"Do you love me" Paige blurted before she could lose her nerve. Piper opened her mouth as if to say how stupid the question was, but the intensity in Paige's eyes was unnerving. There was a need in them that Piper had never seen before. Phoebe's face had paled at the question, for she alone grasped the significance of it. Paige went on.

"I need to know that everything I've done since I came here has meant something to you. If all you think I am is just a replacement for Prue then at least be honest. If you hate me for taking her place then tell me." Piper's face had gone pale again as she grasped Paige's meaning.

"I never thought of you that way." she almost whispered. "I've wanted to tell you how I feel but I just couldn't bring myself to. I just-couldn't find the courage."

"Me neither." Phoebe replied. "I guess I was afraid that if I told you I loved you" She couldn't finish.

"They'd take you away just like they did Prue." Piper finished. "I know it's no excuse for the way we've treated you but it's how I felt." Phoebe nodded her agreement, not trusting herself to speak. Piper almost hesitantly approached Paige and, seeing the need in her eyes, enveloped her in a lingering hug. Then in barely more than a whisper she breathed the three words Paige had longed to hear ever since they'd met.

"I love you." Paige barely found enough of a voice to reply. Then Phoebe was there, hugging them both.

"I love you too." she said. "Don't you ever doubt that."

"We can't undo what we've already done" Piper admitted"but we will make it up to you."

"We won't have that chance if the Avatars take over." Paige said gravely.

"They've got two more people to worry about then." Piper replied, her face hardening. "I want a normal life but not at the price they're asking." Turning to Paige she added"That means we have to find a way to heal Harry and break whatever hold they may have over him."

"We will." Paige replied. "I think I know how to do it, but I'll need your help."

"You have it." Piper assured her.

"Let's get moving." Phoebe agreed. "Every second we waste makes their hold stronger."

"I'll try and distract them." Darryl offered. "Once you start in they'll know what you're trying to do. They'll try to stop you at any cost. I'll keep them off you whatever I have to do."

"Need a hand" a new voice asked. They whirled around to see Inspector Sheridan, who had apparently snuck in without their realizing it.

"How do you" Darryl began. The others simply stared.

"This isn't the time." Sheridan replied. "You didn't answer my question."

"Which question was that" Paige finally asked.

"I was asking Morris if he needed help keeping the Avatars off your back while you go free Harry from their spell."

"Wait a minute" Piper demanded. "How do you know about this"

"I'm giving you the same answer I gave Morris. This isn't the time. I'll explain later but for now we have to break the Avatars' grip on Harry. You don't realize how close he is to joining them. If he does, it'll be all over. There'll be no coming back for him"

"She's right." Darryl replied. "You three get working on that. We'll keep the Avatars off you as long as we can."

"Good luck." Sheridan said as the sisters turned away. "Believe me, you'll need it."

Author's Note

So there's chapter 11. The reason for the delay was partly a busy schedule but partly writer's block. I'd been thinking of the best way to include the Avatars in the story and I figured I'd make them the true enemy. That's why Cole was vanquished in this chapter. I originally thought I'd make one big showdown at the end but couldn't figure out what to have everybody do until then, so I decided to do it this way. I also noticed that, never once during the show have Piper or Phoebe told Paige they love her, so I figured it was high time for them to do so. And yes, Sheridan's going to have a much bigger part from now on. I won't say what it is yet. You'll just have to wait and see. Suffice it to say she knows the girls' secret. Well, hope ya liked this chappie. The next one will come as soon as I have time to write it down.


	12. The Vengeance of Kyle Brody

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 12: The Vengeance of Kyle Brody

Darryl Morris glanced around the foyer as though expecting a herd of Avatars to come charging out of nowhere and attack. He had no idea what an Avatar looked like, so his overactive mind pictured red eyes, horns and tails like your stereotypical devil. Then again, he reminded himself, he'd seen enough magic to know that what you expected was very rarely what you got, if ever. Therefore an Avatar could look like just about anything or anybody.

"They won't come themselves." Sheridan said as though reading Darryl's mind. "They'll want all their power focusing on Harry and the others."

"Shouldn't we be upstairs with them then?" Darryl demanded.

"Probably," Sheridan admitted, "but the second you start heading up there the Avatars will send something to distract you. Besides, they might be planning to let the girls get caught up in freeing Harry and attack from behind."

"When they're distracted." Darryl agreed. "So we're the rear guard."

"We'll make a soldier of you yet." Sheridan replied.

"Hurry up!" Darryl exclaimed impatiently.

"Are you crazy?" Sheridan demanded.

"I don't like to fight unless I really have to," Darryl replied, "but sitting around trying to anticipate the enemy's next move is even worse."

"Just keep your eyes open." Sheridan warned. No sooner had the words left her mouth than two figures appeared out of nowhere. Each was at least twelve feet tall and covered with coarse hair. They were unclad and their skin had the look of burned toast. Their faces were almost totally featureless, and their arms, shoulders and legs were heavily muscled. Each one carried a heavy, ironbound wooden club.

"Trolls!" Darryl exclaimed, remembering all the legends and tales he'd heard as a boy.

"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us." Agreed Sheridan. Calling their weapons, the two police officers charged forward to the attack.

Piper gazed in stunned disbelief at the sight of Draco Malfoy lying motionless on her bed. She had gotten quite enough of a shock at the sight of Harry's pale face without seeing the enemy in her house.

"What's he doing here?" she demanded.

"He saved Chris." Paige explained.

"He also kidnapped and tortured your husband!" Piper pointed out.

"We're getting seriously off track here." Phoebe interjected. "Paige's husband is in need of help here. We're here to give him that."

Harry stood once again in the graveyard in Little Hangleton. His eyes found the marble headstone where he had been tied so many years ago, then shifted to the spot where Cedric Diggory had lain dead before finally returning to the black-robed figure that had appeared to him after he had lost consciousness.

"You have painful memories of this place." A man's voice observed from behind the black hood. "A dear friend was lost to you here, and a dark lord was reborn."

"What do you want?" Harry demanded.

"We want you." The figure replied. "We know your deepest desire is to live a life of peace, to be free of your unwanted destiny. With your aid, we can create a paradise where your dream can become a reality. You and Paige would be able to raise your children in peace. No more innocents would die because of their associations with you as Cedric Diggory did."

"They would die for being human." A new voice broke in. It was Cedric's.

"What?" Harry asked.

"Whatever they promise you," Cedric replied, "do not give in! Many mortals gave their lives thousands of years ago to free the world from the Avatars. If you join them now all those losses will have been for nothing!"

"Ignore the Whitelighter." Avatar Alpha ordered calmly. "A time will come when they will share our dream but it is not now."

"Their argument is persuasive," Cho's voice put in, "but they lie. What they offer is no utopia."

"How do you know?" Harry demanded.

"Because I was one of them." Cho replied. Harry stood stunned at his friend's words.

"You were" he stammered.

"Thousands of years ago," Cho replied, "the Avatars tricked the people of this world into accepting them as their gods by offering them a world free of demons. It was a lie. The Avatars did abolish the demons, but there was more to it. The price mortals paid for this paradise was a terrible one, far greater than any utopia is worth. In exchange for a paradise, the Avatars demanded total control over the destinies of mortals."

"It's not like my destiny's in my hands at the moment." Harry observed bitterly.

"You don't understand!" Cho cried. "This universe does have a specific purpose, but it was decided long ago that mortals would ultimately determine how that purpose was achieved, not gods. There are those who would overturn that decree, and it's for that reason alone that certain mortals must be set certain tasks. The Avatars are a direct threat to the Grand Design and must be stopped. You, as one of the most powerful mortals who has ever lived or may ever live again, are the only one who can restore the balance."

"How do I know that what you're saying is true?" Harry addressed both the Avatar and the others.

"We knew you would be skeptical." Avatar Alpha replied. He drew back his hood and locked eyes with Harry. In that instant Harry saw a wondrous vision. The world was at peace. He saw his own children playing happily with no fear of demons. But something caused him to probe further into the vision. Thus it was that he saw what lay behind the apparent bliss. Behind the veil of ordinary reality, the Avatars watched. When a couple in a car was pulled over for running a red light, the man simply vanished as though he had never been. When two boys got into a fistfight on a school playground, the smaller of the two simply disappeared. All the while, people looked on as though unaware of the mysterious disappearances. And Harry felt magic constricting the souls of the mortals he saw, preventing them from feeling the pain of their losses. His very spirit screamed out in revulsion at the very idea. Then the connection was violently terminated as though Alpha had suddenly realized that he'd revealed far too much.

"Do you see?" Cho demanded. "Their paradise is all a lie." Harry had fallen to his knees in horror. Avatar Alpha watched, clearly taken aback.

"You lie." Harry grated.

"It was never our intention to deceive you!" Alpha assured him. "We may create a paradise but we must also maintain it at any cost."

"I'll fight Voldemort a thousand times over before I join you." Harry spat. "All these years you've been calling to me, offering me a world of peace and it was a lie! If your paradise can only be maintained by killing innocents then don't expect my aid. I'll fight the entire Underworld before I join you."

"Don't you want to be free of all those impossible expectations?" Alpha demanded. "Everyone expects the Famous Harry Potter to solve their problems for them. When Voldemort was reborn, what did they do? They sat back and let Famous Harry Potter take care of him. That's what you'll have to look forward to if you maintain this pointless struggle. Wouldn't you rather be free of all that?" For just a moment, Harry was persuaded. He had never wanted the fame, never asked for the power to vanquish Voldemort nor the responsibility of doing so. Then he heard Piper's voice.

"They never intended to recruit you." she said. "They do so now only because they've failed to kill you. That was their original plan. All these years they've struggled to kill you because they know you to be a threat. You alone have the power they fear."

"Remember the vision they showed you." Phoebe urged. "You saw far more of it than they intended. You know what lies beneath it all. Would you want your children to grow up in that world?"

"No paradise is worth the price they're asking." Paige's voice said. "It's like Dumbledore told you all those years ago after you saved the Sorcerer's Stone from Quirrell. True peace can only be achieved if we're prepared to fight for it. What the Avatars offer isn't peace. It's enslavement."

"Well?" Avatar Alpha asked, seeing Harry's face relax. "What do you say?"

"I'll find my own way there." Harry replied. "Your kind held the world last time only because the people didn't realize what they were giving up. They won't be so ignorant this time."

"I hoped it wouldn't come to this," Alpha said, "but it seems you leave me no choice." He raised his hand and sent a ball of energy hurtling toward Harry. In the instant before it made contact however, it suddenly vanished. Paige, Piper and Phoebe materialized around Harry, the energy ball clutched in Paige's slender hand. In her other hand was a slender rapier, and silver armor clothed her.

"Looks like you've got three more to worry about." Piper observed conversationally.

"You face an enemy quite beyond your strength." Alpha warned. "Though I stand alone before you my power is that of an entire army."

"We're not ordinary mortals." Paige replied. "We're Paladins. Paladins are the Soldiers of Destiny."

"That order died out long ago." Alpha spat. "None remain to challenge us!"

"You might want to rethink that." Said a new voice. Everyone whirled around to see Inspector Sheridan, a wicked mace in her right hand. Darryl materialized beside her, his broadsword gleaming in his hand.

"Those Forest Trolls of yours were a lot of fun." He remarked. "I haven't had a workout that good in a while."

"But howwe" Alpha seemed thoroughly nonplused.

"Didn't you expect us to put up a fight?" yet another voice asked. Gideon orbed into the graveyard, a longbow held expertly before him, an arrow already in position.

"You!" Alpha roared in rage. "Coming here was the last mistake you will ever make!" But before he could do anything, Gideon's arrow flew with deadly accuracy to plunge into Alpha's right shoulder. The Avatar's cry of pain and surprise echoed around the graveyard, and the illusion was dispelled. The combatants stood in a great hall that Harry recognized as the throne room in Malfoy Manor.

"How is this possible?" Alpha demanded. The Avatar had fallen to his knees, blood streaming from his shoulder.

"You left a trail even a Flobberworm could follow." Gideon remarked. "We're not nearly as brainless as they are even if we are sometimes dumb enough to believe your lies, so you should have expected we'd drop in for a little visit."

"Fools!" scoffed the Avatar. His eyes glowed briefly and the room was suddenly filled with Avatars, far more than Harry and his friends could hope to combat.

"I think we may have a problem." Darryl remarked casually.

"No really?" Sheridan replied sarcastically. "I got a great idea. How about you tell us something we don't already know?"

"Guys," Piper urged, "I really think we should get out of here."

"You can certainly try if you want," Avatar Alpha remarked, "of course I wouldn't recommend it. There are far too many of us for even your considerable power. If you run you'll only make it harder on yourselves."

"He's right." Darryl remarked needlessly. "There are too many of them."

"We're still in familiar territory here Morris." Sheridan remarked.

"Will you two stop that?" Paige snapped. "We've got to find some way to get out of this mess!"

"Leave that to me." Gideon said suddenly. "You get Harry and get out of here. I'll distract them."

"But" Paige objected.

"Don't argue!" Gideon snapped. "This could very well be your only chance! Go!" Paige was unwilling to leave Gideon to face the Avatars alone, but she was more unwilling to leave Harry in a place where they might possibly be able to reestablish their hold on him. She knew he hadn't truly been freed of it yet and she was determined not to give the Avatars a chance to take advantage of that. She pulled Harry to his feet ahd hugged him to her. Instantly her sisters, Darryl and Sheridan were at her side.

"Stop them!" roared Alpha as he advanced on Gideon. "They mustn't escape!" The sisters had just enough time to see the Avatar's sword pierce Gideon's chest before a group of Avatars was upon them.

"Now would be a great time." Darryl remarked.

"For what?" Piper demanded.

"Orb us out of here!" Darryl replied impatiently.

"I can't!" Paige replied. "They've placed some sort of antiOrbing charm on this place.

"Great!" Darryl exclaimed sarcastically. "My what a wonderful mess you've gotten us all into!"

"Shut up!" Piper snapped. "You knew the risks when you came after us!"

"I've got one more idea." Paige said. Before she could try it however, an Avatar was before her. This one was a young, attractive female in what seemed to be the traditional black robe. She held out her hand to Paige as though in greeting, but instead sent a bolt of lightning toward her. Paige blocked the atack with her rapier which she barely had time to draw.

"Not bad," admitted her attacker, "but I'd quit while I was ahead if I were you."

meanwhile each of the other Charmed Ones was dealing with her own Avatar opponent. Piper was confronted by Avatar Beta, an attractive older female who seemed to take great delight in tormenting Piper with small but incredibly painful jolts of electricity that served more than anything to infuriate her. Just when she was on the verge of losing it and seizing Beta by the throat and wringing her neck, a strange aura flared to life as Paladin armor materialized on her. Beta stepped back in surprise, and that was all Piper needed. She gestured casually and blew the Avatar across the room, where she collapsed against the far wall.

Phoebe was hard pressed to confront her two attackers. They were both extremely skilled at melee combat and chose to fight her that way. One of them carried a broadsword while the other wielded a battle axe.

"You ready to give up yet?" the sword-wielding Avatar taunted.

"Nope," Phoebe replied, "I'm just getting started."

"Just so you know, premonitions and Empathy can't hurt us." remarked the second Avatar. "You need something moreI don't knowthreatening."

"Looks like you're in trouble." observed the first as he advanced. But something had awakened in Phoebe after she'd finally admitted her love for Paige. She found herself determined to fight alongside her sister at any cost, even if it meant giving up her own life. She smiled at her attackers and stood her ground.

"You might find it more trouble than its worth to try and kill me." she remarked. "Even if you do, my sisters will fight on until your kind have been exterminated if that's what it takes to preserve the Grand Design."

"Enough talk!" snapped the first Avatar. He raised his weapon and brought it sharply down, aiming for Phoebe's unprotected throat. Instantly she was awash with silver light. When it cleared there stood yet another Paladin. She smiled and parried the Avatar's attack with her own weapon, a silver mace whose crown was studded with sharp spikes. With a flick of her wrist she opened a series of small but painful gashes along the Avatar's forearm. he gaped at them in shock before snarling his defiance.

Piper drove her shoulder into Avatar Beta's ribcage, knocking her to the ground again. The Avatar, now totally enraged, sent waves of lightning at Piper, who merely shrugged them off. She reversed the saber she held and brought its pommel sharply down on the side of Avatar Beta's head, felling her instantly. The Avatar crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Piper stopped to admire her handywork for a moment, surprised that even an Avatar could be even temporarily incapacitated like that. It was a startled cry of pain from Avatar Alpha that drew everyone's attention. How Gideon had been able to continue to fight with an obviously mortal wound nobody knew, but he was still fighting tooth and nail against Alpha who, to put it simply, had never known such ferocity. Gideon sent a wave of energy into the Avatar, then jerked a dagger from the air before him and drove it into the Avatar's injured shoulder. Alpha voiced a cry of agony and fury and lunged for the wounded Elder, but Gideon was ready. He stood his ground and, at the moment of impact, unleashed the last of his energies upon the enraged Avatar.

"Now!" Piper cried. "He's distracted! Let's go!"

"Stop them!" shrieked Avatar Alpha in rage, but it was already too late. Paige called Harry to her and they all Orbed away before the Avatars could act to prevent it.

"Can you heal him?" Piper asked Leo.

"I'll try," Leo replied, "but I've never encountered a poison like this." The golden glow emanated from his hands for several seconds but nothing happened.

"Something's blocking my powers." he finally replied.

"It's the magic of the Avatars." said a new voice. They all whirled around to see Cho Chang standing in the doorway of Piper's room. "Only another Avatar can counteract it."

"Then you'd better get over here and do it." Piper warned. "If you want our trust you'll have to earn it. If you betray us I swear we won't rest till we've found out how to make the vanquishing potion and used it on you." Cho approached Harry and laid her hand on his wounded shoulder. A strange glow emanated from her skin for a long moment and she finally drew back.

"Now you can heal him." she said. "I've drawn the poison from it but I don't have the power to heal." Leo approached and tried his healing magic again. This time the wound closed and Harry drifted into sleep. It was then that a roar of rage echoed down the hall.

"You!" Eveyrone whirled around to see Kyle Brody, Darryl's partner, charging into the room, his face a mask of fury. He hammered into Cho and slammed her into the wall. Reaching into his pocket he drew forth a vial of liquid and held it up. Cho's eyes widened in shock.

"I knew I'd catch one of you out in the open." Brody grated. "Now I'll have the revenge I've been seeking for twenty years!"

"But why" Cho began.

"Your kind killed my parents!" Brody roared.

"Get a hold of yourself!" Darryl snapped. "You're not thinking!"

"Oh I'm not, am I?" Brody snarled. "I'm thinking I'd better get you out of the way before you interfere with my mission!" He suddenly pulled a gun out of a concealed holster and pointed it at Darryl.

"Brody no!" Darryl cried. "You can't" Brody pulled the trigger. A dart flew from the gun and struck Darryl squarely in the neck. The man's eyes widened as he realized what it was, then he slowly crumpled to the floor. Satisfied, Brody turned back to Cho and, before anyone could stop him, hurled the vial directly at her. It shattered directly at her feet and a cloud of smoke erupted from it and shot directly into Cho's body. Her eyes widened in shock as her hands reflexively came up. Lightning flared from them and hurled a stunned Brody across the room. Cho's eyes widened in horror as she saw what she had just done.

"No," she breathed. Leo rushed for her but she waved him back.

"You can't do anything for me." she said weakly. "This potion kills Avatars and there's nothing that can counteract it."

"You could embrace your true heritage," suggested a new voice. Avatar Alpha appeared, seemingly unharmed. "You have it in you to reverse time to just before Brody threw the potion and kill him."

"I left that life willingly!" Cho snapped defiantly. "I'll never go back. If that means I die then so be it." Alpha's eyes met those of the Charmed Ones.

"You haven't won yet." he warned. "Even if Chang does die it won't weaken us much." He bent over her and started to use his power to heal her. But a strange force erupted from her and flung him away as though he were a rag doll. Cedric Diggory Orbed into the room and knelt beside Cho.

"You must save yourself." he said. "Embrace your Avatar self once more. They can't succeed without your power."

"I swore never to use that power again." Cho protested weakly.

"But Harry will need your help." Cedric pointed out. "You are the Renegade, the one who will lead the Chosen against the Avatars. Without you, Harry has no chance, and this world will pay the price for his failure."

"Brody'll just kill her again." Sheridan objected. "What's the good of rewinding time if it's just going to turn out the same way?"

"I'll handle brody." Cedric replied. "Cho, trust me. Use your power and rewind time. It's our only hope." Cho gazed up at him in shock for a moment, then did as she was told.

Brody turned away from Darryl and threw the potion at Cho, but Cedric flung out a hand and caught it. Brody lunged for him but was brought up short by a shimmering barrier that flared to life around him.

"Let me go!" he snarled. "I'll kill you!"

"You won't accomplish anything by killing her or me." Cedric replied mildly. "The only way to vanquish the Avatars is to vanquish their leader."

"I'll find him then!" Brody roared.

"No," replied Cedric, "you won't. That job falls to Harry. You can certainly help him out but only if you put aside your anger."

"You don't get it, do you?" Brody snarled. "You haven't been plagued by nightmares for twenty years! You haven't been forced to relive the day you saw your parents die!"

"This won't get you anywhere." Cedric repeated. "Your anger will only be your undoing." Brody glared at Cedric for a long moment. Then a change seemed to come over him. His shoulders slumped in defeat and he nodded. Cedric dispelled the shield and Brody turned and wordlessly departed.

"What about Darryl?" Piper asked in a shaky voice.

"Tranquilizer, nothing serious." Sheridan replied. Leo leaned over Darryl and removed the dart. Then he used his magic to heal the small wound.

"Where is he?" Darryl demanded, jumping to his feet.

"He left." Leo replied.

"Did he"

"No," replied Cedric, "but I have a feeling he'll try again."

"He's a danger to us all." Phoebe remarked.

"Would he actually kill any of us if he thought we stood in his way?" Piper asked.

"The tranquilizer was a warning." Sheridan remarked. "Next time he'll get serious."

"We've got to watch him then." Piper said.

"This changes everything." Paige remarked. "Not only do we have Avatars to worry about but we've also got a homicidal maniac who'll kill us if we get in the way of his plans to kill an Avatar."

"The situation is more serious than you know." Aedrus said, Orbing in. His face was bleaker than they'd ever seen it, the amused twinkle gone from his eyes. "The Avatars have been unleashed. They will stop at nothing to see you destroyed."

"Is what Cedric said true?" Phoebe asked. "Is Alpha the key to the rest of them?"

"Avatar Alpha is the focal point of all their power. Destroying him will destroy the rest, but it must be done on their plain. Alpha's death will unleash an energy storm so intense that were he to fall on our plain this world would be utterly destroyed."

"He'll try to arrange it that way." Darryl remarked. "If they can't have the world they'll destroy it."

"Then we'll have to go to them." Paige said. "We'll meet them on their own plain so they can't use our own world against us."

"That's a great idea," Sheridan remarked, "except we don't know where the portal is."

"I think we do." Leo remarked suddenly. "I bet it's in the Malfoys' throne room."

"Which is where young master Malfoy comes in." Sheridan agreed, going over to the bed and jerking the still dazed Malfoy to his feet.

"I don't think so!" Piper snapped. "Malfoy's shown himself to be untrustworthy before. That house is bound to have all kinds of traps in it and I would not put it past him to lead us right into one of them."

"You're not going." Darryl said firmly. "You've got to watch over the boys."

"Excuse me," Piper remarked coldly, "but I believe I'm the one who"

"Think!" Sheridan snapped. "Chris and Wyatt are young. Their minds are still malleable."

"But" Piper began.

"Think about what that could mean." Leo urged. "Would you want Chris' death to have been in vain?" Piper's face clouded, but she nodded.

"I'll stay and look after them."

"Paige must remain as well." Aedrus said gravely.

"Like hell!" Paige snapped.

"You have already exposed your unborn child to the magic of the Avatars." Aedrus pointed out. "Your child's mind is even more malleable than those of your nephews. Would you risk it being corrupted by the Avatars?"

"I won't lose him." Paige replied in a low voice, her gaze fixed unwaveringly upon Harry.

"You will be able to give aid to him from here." Aedrus said. "When the time is right he will call upon your power and that of your sisters. You will be able to send him your aid through the connection between you."

"I don't like it," Paige said, "but there's no way I'm giving them a chance to take my baby away from me."

"I'll have to go alone then." Harry said softly as he came around.

"Not a chance." Darryl disagreed. "I'm coming with you."

"So am I." Sheridan replied. "You'll need someone to keep the Avatars off you while you go have a chat with Alpha."

"That's where Agent Brody comes in." Cedric said. "He'll be joining us."

"In his condition?" Piper cried in amazement. "Do you really think that's a good idea? He tried to kill Cho!"

"Kyle Brody has the one vanquishing potion still in existence."

"I took it from him." Cedric said. "The time isn't yet right for it to be used."

"But why bring him along if you have the potion?" Phoebe asked.

"Brody has in his blood a small amount of magical potential." Aedrus said. "He must lay hands on the potion once more to make it ready for its intended target."

"Alpha." Harry replied.

"Indeed." Aedrus said.

"What about Cho?" Phoebe asked. "Should we keep an eye on her?"

"She'll be with us." Cedric replied.

"Are you sure that's wise?" Leo asked. "She could turn on us at any moment."

"We need an Avatar to open the portal." Cedric pointed out. "Since Cho has no love for them, she's the ideal choice."

"I'll come with you." Malfoy said suddenly.

"I think not." Piper said firmly. "You've caused us quite enough misery and I'm not about to give you the chance to do anymore damage."

"He knows the manor." Leo pointed out.

"Exactly." Piper agreed. "He knows right where to lead Harry so he'll spring the traps on that place."

"He's coming with us." Leo said firmly. "He knows the layout of the house. Besides, even if he betrays us he's still outnumbered seven to one."

"You're not going." Piper said.

"I'm afraid that isn't your choice to make." Aedrus said. "Besides, Leo needs to be there in order for everything to turn out the way it's supposed to."

"If you take him away from me again you can kiss the Power of Three goodbye." Piper warned. "You owe me, not to mention the boys."

"It's for that reason that Leo needs to go with Harry." Aedrus said. "Something's going to happen there that will make it possible for the two of you to be together."

"All right," Piper agreed reluctantly, "but if this doesn't work don't expect our help anymore."

"We're running out of time." Darryl reminded everyone. "Every second we waste brings them that much closer to making their move."

"I'll go fetch Brody." Cedric said. "The rest of you Orb to the manor, but don't go in!"

"Ready?" Leo asked. The rest nodded. In a swirl of Orbs, the adventurers departed. Behind them, the Avatar who had been spying on them made his move.

Author's Note

Ah, another chapter done. There'll probably be one more chapter, possibly two, and then an epilogue. Hope you've all enjoyed this story, and perhaps there'll be a sequel sometime down the road. And yes I acknowledge this chapter may not be quite as good as others but I'll more than likely do some polishing up at a later time. And sorry for the long delay.


	13. Shadow Unleashed

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 13: Shadow Unleashed

The Halliwell Manor was ominously silent after the departure of Harry and the rest of the group sent to vanquish Avatar Alpha. Piper, who on any other dday would have charished a moment of silence, would have given anything for the usual chaos that seemed to fill her life. Something seemed very wrong somehow. Piper had the nasty feeling she was being watched.

"Is it just me," Phoebe asked, "or does something not feel right to you?"

"I get the feeling we're being watched." Paige agreed. That was as far as she got before the Avatars materialized out of the shadows.

Malfoy Manor was ominously silent. Harry and his companions made their way cautiously through its many corridors, each of them made uneasy by the lack of any resistance.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Darryl remarked. "It's almost as if they knew we were coming." That was as far as he got. Shadowy forms materialized out of nothing, substanceless beings with eyes that burned bright red. At the sight of these beings, Leo's face went deathly pale.

"Shadowen." he breathed in horror. "We're in trouble."."

"Go!" Cedric snapped at Harry. "The throne room's that way! All this business depends on you!"

"But---"

"Go!" Cedric urged. "We'll keep the Shadowen off your back as long as we can!" Harry looked at his friend's determined face and nodded.

"Be careful." he said. Then he turned and ran down the corridor Cedric had pointed out. A few of the Shadowen broke off the attack on his friends to try to follow him, but something held them back and they didn't pursue him very far.

The throne room held only one occupant. Avatar Alpha, clad now in black armor, met Harry's gaze coldly as the Paladin entered his presence.

"You've made your last mistake." he remarked. Then he lunged at Harry, a broadsword at the ready.

It was extremely fortunate that Harry was so caught up in his battle against Avatar Alpha not to notice anything else, for the pitched battle at Halliwell Mannor was not going well for the Charmed Ones. Already drained from their last confrontation with the Avatars, the sisters were prime targets for the immortals this time. Even so, they fought with every ounce of strength they could muster, Piper in particular causing the most damage to the Avatar ranks. She could not kill them, but she left quite a few unconscious, and her sisters, though not up to their usual standard, were proving to be quite a handful as well. Even so, all three knew they were bound to slip up eventually, and that when that mischance occurred they would be finished.

Piper was distracted from her struggle with a pair of sword-wielding Avatars by a startled scream from Phoebe. She turned in time to see an Avatar's blade arcing downward to slash Phoebe's shoulder.

"Behind you!" Phoebe cried. Piper threw herself to the side and was rewarded with a snarl of rage as the blade meant for her pierced the shoulder of its owner's comrade.

"You'll pay for that!" the injured Avatar growled, seizing her around the throat with his good arm.

"It's over." said his companion.

Then the Avatar holding Paige gave a cry of dismay and let go of her, his eyes widening and his body going rigid. he collapsed to the floor, a dagger protruding from his back. Piper turned to see a varitable army of young men and women, all armed with weapons of various kinds. One in particular, a small, red-haired girl, seemed to have a great deal of skill with throwing knives judging by the number of Avatars who doubled over in agony with silver daggers protruding from various places.

"You three look like you've seen better days." remarked a familiar voice. Piper walked right up to Ron Weasley and gave him a huge hug, catching him quite by surprise.

"You're a lifesaver!" she cried. "I'd kiss you but---well, y'know---I'm taken."

"But how---" demanded an astonished Avatar Beta. Piper reccognized the Avatar she had felled during their last confrontation.

"We're not bound together the way you are," Hermione Granger remarked, "but we have our own ways of staying connected. We had a feeling some of Harry's family needed us."

"But we shielded this place!" Avatar Gamma cried. "No mortal should have been able to---"

"Certainly no mortal would have been able to do so." agreed a new voice. Everyone whirled around to see a truly magnificent creature materializing in the living room. How the golden dragon managed to fit inside the house without causing any damage was a mystery none of them chose to investigate. All they cared about was that here apparently was a savior.

"Bahamut!" cried several Avatars in shock. Piper was surprised when several of them dropped to their knees as though in reverence to the great beast.

"The time has come for a terrible wrong to be put right." the great dragon proclaimed. "The time has come for you to release the Shadow."

"No!" cried Avatar Gamma in horror.

"That's crazy!" Piper exclaimed.

"When the time is right the Shadow may be unleashed without harm to innocents." Bahamut disagreed. "That time is now. Only through the Shadow can the boy achieve his victory."

"Back to the manor!" cried Gamma in dismay. The Avatars seized their weapons and those wounded who still lived and were gone.

"Do it!" Bahamut urged. "They go to warn their master!" the Charmed Ones nodded. They joined hands and, with all their remaining strength, summoned forth the Nexus.

As for Darryl and the remainder of Harry's companions, their battle was not going well. They had discovered very quickly that the Shadowen were highly resistant to all forms of magic and indeed seemed to grow stronger whenever magic was brought to bear against them. Darryl in particular had suffered a serious injury when his enchanted sword had come into contact with the fabric of the Shadowen, a deathly chill flaring through the blade to render him unconscious. The others, seeing Darryl put out of commission, began to despair. They discovered that, while they caused no visible harm to the Shadowen, ordinary weapons did seem to slow their advance or, as Leo put it, "they won't draw them right to us."

"This is getting us nowhere." Sheridan remarked to Leo and Kyle, who alone among the group were still standing.

"We're still in familiar territory." Leo panted. They had been fighting for the past half hour to stay one step ahead of their etherial attackers and the strain was beginning to show.

"There's got to be some weakness to these things." Kyle insisted. "We're just not seeing it!"

"Look out!" Leo yelled. He was an instant too late. A Shadowen had fastened itself about Kyle's body and was attempting to feed itself into his soul. His eyes widened as the inhuman agony filled him.

"I think we're in trouble." Leo remarked. Then suddenly Kyle collapsed as the Shadowen was yanked violently from him by an unseen force. Into the hall came an army of young men and women. They were barely a dozen but they fought as though they were an army numbering in the thousands. The magic they wielded was unlike anything Leo had ever seen, though he knew instantly where it had to have come from. But no legend could have prepared him for the sight of Dragon magic in action. Bahamut, king of dragons, had long ago sworn an oath to protect the innocent and, to that end, he and those loyal to him had forged weapons and armor and other magical objects to be bestowed on those they deemed worthy. Here now came their chosen, wreaking terrible devastation upon the ranks of the Shadowen, who apparently could not bear the touch of a dragon's magic.

"The cavalry has arrived!" cried a familiar voice. Leo gazed in stunned amazement at Ron Weasley, who had just sent several Shadowen to their deaths with a glowing battle axe.

"Fancy meeting you here!" he cried, unable to keep the mix of relief and joy out of his voice. He rushed Harry's best friend and the two exchanged a high five. Then Leo saw Kyle. The young man was lying in a crumpled heap where he had fallen, his body undamaged but his soul shattered.

"Holy crap." breathed the red-haired girl who was kneeling by him. "One of those things must have tried to possess him."

"Get him out of here." Ron ordered. "Let's not leave him here in case there are more of them." Ginny nodded and vanished with Kyle in her arms.

"Ginny has the power to heal." Ron explained. "She might be able to do something for him."

"But it's not his body." Leo objected. "It's his soul."

"Ginny's already proven that she's a match for this sort of thing." Ron replied soberly. "there was an attack at your place after you left. The Avatars---"

"Piper!" Leo cried in horror.

"Everyone's fine." Ron assured hastily. "We got there in time to send the Avatars packing, but they're on their way here. Something about what the girls were planning didn't sit right with them."

"I wonder what they're afraid of." Sheridan remarked. "It's not altogether reassuring."

"We got lucky." remarked a round-faced boy, walking over to where Kyle had lain and ppicking something up. Leo instantly recognized it.

"That's the potion!" he cried. "We've got to get that to Harry."

"Right this instant as a matter of fact." agreed Hermmione Granger. "If the Avatars get their hands on that potion---"

"It's over!" proclaimed Alpha, gazing down on his fallen opponent. It had been a long and furious struggle, but in the end Potter had succumbed to the Avatar's greater might. He lay now on the stone floor, bleeding from many wounds, his skin blistered from the Avatar's magical assaults.

"They'll find a way to finish you!" Harry snarled. "You haven't got long to live!"

"I've longer to live than you." remarked Alpha coldly. "I'd guess the poison should do its job in less than a minute." So caught up in his victory was he that he failed to catch the sudden flickering of the air around Harry, nor the surge of energy as an unseen force entered his body. In the next instant Harry was on his feet, his skin unmarked and his wounds apparently healed. He seemed suddenly to grow into immensity, and Avatar Alpha stepped back from him in shock.

"What is this?" he demanded.

"This," said Harry in a voice most unlike his own, "is the end." In the next instant a familiar crystal vial materialized in his hand and, with a lazy flick of his wrist he sent it spinning toward Avatar Alpha. It shattered at the Avatar's feet, missing him by less than an inch. But it was close enough. The potion exploded from the shattered container and hammered into Alpha, whose eyes widened in dismay. For he knew now the nature of the transformation the boy had undergone, and he knew what that must mean.

"No," he pleaded, "don't do it!"

"Give me one good reason not to." Harry challenged, still in that inhuman voice.

"You'll destroy us all!" Alpha cried. "You'll tear the world apart!"

"More of your lies." Harry remarked. "You always were a bad liar. I'm surprised nobody ever saw you for what you really were."

"You don't know what you're doing!" Alpha cried. "The Shadow knows no limitations! If you unleash it---"

"your time is up." Harry proclaimed, and this time Alpha caught the hundreds and thousands of voices underlying Potter's own. Alpha's rage blazed forth anew but his fear rose to choke him.

"Please!" he cried. "Don't do this! You don't know the danger!" The boy spoke not a word as he gazed at his fallen foe. He held the Avatar's gaze for one more moment, and then he unleashed the shadow.

Harry felt the shadow burst from him in a rush, as though it had waited centuries for this moment to come and could wait no longer. Avatar Alpha had time for one final cry before the Shadow was upon him. In the instant it made contact it shattered into thousands of smaller shadows, dark forms that surrounded Alpha with their substance and turned him to ashe. In that instant a cry echoed from horizon to horizon as every Avatar's mind was torn violently from Alpha's. Harry understood finally the truth behind the Collective and the reason for its existence. So apparently did they. As the knowledge of their terrible misuse overwhelmed them, each and every Avatar fell to his knees, his weapon falling from suddenly nerveless fingers.

When the potion vanished from Neville's hand, his first reaction was dismay. He started imagining all manor of vile uses to which the Avatars would put that precious potion, perhaps finding a way to use it against Harry. Almost immediately however, there came a titanic explosion and a cry of inhuman despair. The Avatars, who had been about to encircle and devour these humans who dared defy them, underwent a shocking change. Every one of them fell to his or her knees, their weapons falling from their hands, their faces filled with despair.

"Let's get out of here." Darryl urged. "This could get ugly."

Harry stood gazing at the place where Avatar Alpha had been only moments ago. Now all that remained of him was a small pile of dust. In the next instant however, the energy storm erupted from the remains, flinging Harry across the room and out into the hall beyond. He didn't register the pair of arms that reached to catch him, nor the unearthly shimmer as his carrier bore him away from the site of battle. He failed too to register the cataclysmic explosion as Malfoy Manor was torn apart from within by the energy storm. He registered only a moment of inhuman agony, and then all was blackness.

Author's Note

At long, long last, a new chapter. I've been really busy the last few months and then there was a bout of writer's block, but it should be easier now, what with being on the home streth and all. I estimate maybe two more chapters to this particular story. Don't worry though. I'm prety much decided on a sequel. And I'd like to apologize in advance if this chapter doesn't live up to the standards you've come to expect. I've been away for so long so I'm probably a little rusty. But if any of you enjoyed readoing this as much as I enjoyed writing it, we'll both be well off.


	14. The Restoration of All Things

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 14: The Restoration of All Things

When Harry came awake again, the first thing he registered was the darkness. A moment later he became conscious of the surface upon which he lay, a comfortable sofa. He stirred slightly, trying to get into a more comfortable position, but even a slight motion caused his joints to protest quite noisily. This in turn caused him to swear savagely.

"Language, my friend." Said an amused voice from nearby. "There are ladies and children in the house, you know." Harry went cold, recognizing the voice all too well.

"You survived?" he breathed.

"I see I've some explaining to do." The speaker replied. He waved a hand and a lamp on a nearby end table flared to life and Harry, disbelieving, stared into the blue eyes of Avatar Alpha.

"So it was all for nothing." He whispered.

"On the contrary." The Avatar replied. "Your efforts have reversed the effects of my greatest failure." Even as shocked as he was, Harry did not miss the note of eons-old sorrow in the other's voice.

"I don't understand." he said.

"You will." The Avatar assured. "Did you sense anything at all after you unleashed the Shadow?" Harry hesitated.

"I thought I felt…I don't know, despair." He finally admitted.

"You would have." The Avatar replied. "In that instant the entire order was made aware of the terrible misuse to which they've been subjected for eons beyond counting." He paused, clearly attempting to gather his thoughts. "First you should know that my name is Edaemus. I was the true lord of the Avatars. We were the finest mages and warriors in the universe, at least when it comes to those in the service of light."

"So you're good?" Harry asked.

"We were," the Avatar replied, "although there may be some question of that after all that's happened. To cut a long story as short as possible, we were tasked by Elynthia, goddess of light, with guarding this world and its inhabitants, as well as teaching them to harness the power of magic. This was a time when magic was known to all, and though not all humans were practitioners there were many more than there are these days."

"Why don't our histories tell of this?" Harry asked.

"I'm coming to that." The Avatar replied mildly. "During this time we founded both the orders of Mystic Knights and the Whitelighters. The Mystic Knights, Paladins if you prefer, were pure warriors, while the Whitelighters were healers and in many cases teachers. For many thousands of years our work proceeded smoothly." He sighed. "Unfortunately I grew careless. We are every bit as flawed as mortals. It had never happened up to this point, but I was about to learn that even an Avatar could fall prey to greed. One of our finest warriors was known by many as Kylan the Ruthless, as he had earned himself a reputation over the centuries that made all but the most powerful demons flee at the mere mention of his name. Unfortunately, he felt that we were selling ourselves short, making our job more difficult by allowing humanity free will. Little did I know that he had been serving another master for quite some time."

"The Source?" Harry asked.

"No." the Avatar replied. "This particular being makes what most people know as the Source look like an ordinary mortal. Even the most powerful demons hesitate to speak her name. She is Akasha, queen of darkness." The Avatar smiled as he registered the shiver that travelled along Harry's spine. "Akasha, unlike Elynthia, ruled her domain through fear. She also forced those who served her to bind themselves to her in mind and spirit even if not body."

"A collective." Harry mused.

"Indeed." Replied the Avatar. "It actually proved her undoing. She underestimated Kylan's mental fortitude. I found out after it happened that when she tried to subdue him he was able to turn her own will back upon her, tearing her from her own collective and taking her place as its leader. Then while she was reeling from that he banished her to the Abyss." Harry's eyes widened. Edaemus smiled and continued. "It was then that I began to realize what was happening and confronted him. Unfortunately he'd become so powerful that I was unprepared to face him. I barely escaped with my life. In fact this is the first time I've assumed physical form in more than ten-thousand years. I knew Kylan would have taken on my appearance and subjugated the rest of the order."

"Are they free now?" Harry asked. The other nodded.

"We lost a few." He replied. "They'd given into despair long ago."

"What were those shadows?" Harry asked.

"They were the spirits of the Avatars." Edaemus replied. "How they did it I do not know, but somehow they must have kept a part of their minds free from Kylan. Somehow they bound their powers in such a way that Kylan failed to notice. Perhaps it was the magic inherent in this house that did the job, but they sent a portion of their essence to hide here in the form of what became the Nexus and the Shadow. Then I would guess that over the centuries they absorbed trace amounts of magical energy from members of the Halliwell family, so that by the time events got around to where we are now they had regained enough power that they would be able to destroy Kylan if they were ever unleashed."

"So then why don't we remember all this?" Harry asked.

"That would be the Whitelighters' doing I'm afraid." Edaemus sighed. "Over the centuries they too had grown rather arrogant, mostly the Elders. After our fall they stepped in to fill the vacuum and decided that the knowledge of magic was too dangerous a thing for most mortals to handle. They erased that as well as all memory of what we once were, making it seem as though it had only ever been them in charge."

"what happens now?" Harry asked.

"We return to Avalon, our homeland." Edamus replied. "We need to reestablish our true bond and come to terms with all we've endured." He smiled. "Then if you are amenable we will need your help to set things right again."

"Can I ask you something first?"

"By all means."

"Are the others all right?" Harry asked.

"They're all quite weak," Edaemus replied, "but they're all well on their way to full recoveries. My invaluable brother has been tending to them in the week you've been unconscious."

"A whole week?" Harry asked incredulously.

"You needed it." The Avatar remarked. "A few more moments and you would have been beyond our aid. Mr. Turner got you out just in time, though he insisted afterward that we strip him of the powers we gave him."

"He survived?" Harry asked in alarm.

"His human half did." Edaemus replied. "He implored to let him aid you however he could. His human half, you understand, genuinely wished to become good and atone for his sins. When he realized the danger you were in he was prepared to sacrifice himself to see that Paige didn't lose you. He'd have fought Kylan himself if Cho had not restrained him. She released him after you set loose the Shadow. He took the opportunity to bear you out of Malfoy Manor and back here, then supplied you with a great deal of his own life force in order that you might survive."

"Where is he now?" Harry asked. Edaems smiled.

"Having a little chat with Phoebe I'd imagine." As if in answer, two figures entered the room. Harry saw Phoebe first, then the familiar figure of Cole. Cole met Harry's gaze and didn't look away.

"I'm sorry." He said simply, his voice barely more than a whisper. Harry continued to stare into the haunted eyes of the former demon for a long moment. Then he nodded. Cole sighed with relief. He turned then to meet the eyes of Edaemus.

"May I come with you?" he asked. "I don't think it would be wise for me to stay here."

"Whoa wait a minute!" Phoebe objected. Cole held up his hand.

"I know you understand what's been going on," he said, "and I appreciate that. But your sisters aren't likely to be so accepting."

"And how do you figure that?" a new voice asked. Cole whirled around in alarm and his face paled upon seeing who it was.

"Piper?" he asked.

"We all know the truth of the matter." She said. "Does that undo what you've already done?" Cole started to speak but Piper held up a hand. "Nothing can change the past. But none of us is likely to overlook the fact that if it weren't for you we wouldn't be here. I know that it was you who persuaded Cho to warn us about what Alpha was really up to."

"We were both wallowing in self-pity." Cole remarked. "The main difference was that her continued inaction would have destroyed the world as we know it and probably the universe as well." He paused. "I suppose the same could be said about me." He finally acknowledged.

"I'd say that's earned you the chance to make a better future." Paige said. "I wouldn't throw it away."

"They are correct." Edaemus replied. "Your place is here."

"If you're sure." Cole said dubiously.

"Your services are going to be needed fairly shortly I'd imagine." Edaemus remarked.

"I'd forgotten what a good cook Piper was." Cole remarked some time later, leaning back and pushing aside his empty plate. Harry grinned at him. He still found the other's presence disconcerting, but his alarm bells weren't ringing, so he was doing his best to relax.

"I've known only a few other people who came close to matching her in that department." He remarked.

"Do I know any of them?" Piper asked.

"Molly Weasley?" Paige suggested.

"Oh right." Piper said. "Maybe we'll have to take a trip over there so we can all judge her talent." She smiled. She had met the Weasley matriarch only a few times but they'd liked each other right from the beginning.

"Where the heck is Darryl?" Phoebe asked. "If he doesn't hurry up I have a feeling our friend here will steal the rest of the food." She grinned at Cole.

"There's plenty for everybody." Piper assured her, serving Harry yet another helping despite his objections. Not that they were all that genuine. Two more people came into the kitchen just then. These were the Avatar formerly known as Beta, whose true name was Elana. She was in what the Halliwells recognized as her true form, that of a young woman with long, flowing black hair and brown eyes. She was lending her arm to an obviously weak Gideon.

"How did you manage to survive?" Harry asked in amazement. "I thought you'd burned up all your energy attacking Alpha."

"Apparently not." Gideon replied. "Of course I'm mortal now, not that there's anything particularly wrong with that."

"You could still take Sigmund up on his offer you know." Elana replied in her soft voice.

"Maybe in time." Gideon replied. "But for now I want some peace."

"You've certainly earned it." The Avatar smiled. "If you'll excuse me, I'd best get back. The Malfoys are still dangerously in need of our aid. When we recalled Lucius from the Underworld it took him quite a while to realize what had happened. Narcissa was even worse off."

"What?" Harry asked.

"It seems the Malfoys had been planning to turn against Voldemort even before you killed him." Elana explained. "Then the usurper got hold of them and they never got the chance. But once they'd seen just how far Voldemort was willing to go in order to seize power the dark order didn't hold much appeal anymore. Narcissa was more concerned with protecting Draco at first but she soon caught on as well. Draco was already on the path but he was unknowingly drawn into the same trap as the rest of his family."

"I never would've imagined." Harry remarked.

"Nor did Lucius want you to." Elana agreed. "If even one hint of what he was planning had gotten back to Voldemort-" she left it hanging.

"Will they survive?" Paige asked. "Draco did save my nephew's life after all."

"We're certainly going to do our best to insure that." Elana assured her. "It's only the first step on the road to undoing the damage that's been done."

"Let us know if we can help." Harry said.

"You will," Elana said, "and soon. We'll be calling on you as soon as we've taken time to reestablish our bond. The only reason we've waited this long is because of the wounded who need our attention."

It was a short while later that Darryl came downstairs, leaning heavily on the arm of his wife. He was quite obviously as stiff as Harry had been, and he seemed to be having difficulty standing up straight, as though he had a crick in his back. Every time he tried he let loose with a string of expletives that made Harry cringe. Cole took one look at him and stood up.

"Lie down." He ordered calmly.

"I've been doing nothing but that for the past week thank you very much." Darryl growled. "And what the hell are you doing here?" Cole said nothing, only met Darryl's gaze with his own. It was only a moment but it clearly conveyed all that needed to be explained. Darryl's eyes widened in astonishment.

"Lie down." Cole said, indicating a clear space on the thickly carpeted floor. He paused. "Unless of course you'd prefer to have me kick your feet out from under you?" Darryl slowly and painfully lowered himself onto his stomach. Cole removed his shoes and approached Darryl. "Don't move." He ordered. Then he started to walk on the other man. There were crackling noises and loud pops as Darryl writhed beneath Cole's feet. Finally Cole stopped, probing thoughtfully at a stubborn spot between Darryl's shoulder blades. Then he calmly took a few steps forward, rose onto his toes and then came down quite firmly. The shriek that came from Darryl's lips was strangled, the air having been driven out of his lungs. It did not, however, mask the noise that came from his back. It sounded, Harry thought, like the sound that might come from a tree trunk being snapped in two. Everybody except Cole winced.

"Get up." Cole ordered calmly.

"Can't." Darryl wheezed. "You've killed me." Cole reached down and hoisted Darryl onto his feet.

"Walk around a bit." He said.

"Are you kidding me?" Darryl asked, still sounding breathless. "I can't even breathe!"

"Are we gonna have to do this the hard way?" Cole asked pleasantly.

"Don't have a heart attack!" Darryl exclaimed hastily. "I'm walking!" He slowly began to walk around the room.

"Swing your arms back and forth a bit." Leo suggested helpfully. "You've got to loosen up those muscles." Darryl did as he was told. A few minutes later he grinned.

"I hate to admit it," he said, "but I do feel better."

"I figured you would." Cole remarked calmly.

"I don't know that you had to be quite so rough though." Darryl remarked.

"You know," Cole said pleasantly, "I could easily put you back into exactly the same condition you were in when you came down here. Ask and ye shall receive as the old saying goes."

"No thanks." Darryl replied hastily. Cole grinned.

"I believe there's still some breakfast in the kitchen." He said. "You might want to help yourself before someone steals it all."

"Must you?" Piper asked with some annoyance.

"There are some people here who haven't eaten in several days." Cole reminded her pleasantly. "It's been several months for me."

Time passed as time does. Then on a night in early spring, Harry awoke, thinking he had heard a voice. He listened for several moments and it came again.

"The time has come." The voice was that of Edaemus. "With your aid, magic shall again be returned to the people of this world." Harry jumped to his feet and held out his hands. Two swords appeared in them. One was that of Godrick Gryffindor. The other was the legendary blade Excalibur. Paige, having also awakened, gave him a questioning look.

"I don't know." Harry said. "I just know we need them."

The moon was high in the sky as the large gathering surrounded the glowing stone. Harry stared at the spherical object from which emanated a steady blue glow.

"The time has come." Edaemus exalted. "Place the blades in the stone. By your actions shall their full power be restored and magic returned to the people of your world." Piper suddenly stepped forward, Wyatt in her arms.

"Go on." She encouraged. Wyatt's eyes fixed on Excalibur, which hovered in midair beside the sword of Griffindor. Then he made a motion with his hand and the sword slowly drifted towards the stone, settling gently into one of the two slots carved in its smooth surface. A brief flare of white light came from the stone when the blade slid home.

"Your turn." Paige said to Harry. Harry stepped forward and gestured at Gryffindor's blade, which slowly drifted over to take its place beside Excalibur. The flare of white that erupted from the stone made the one that had come before seem as nothing. In the same moment a triumphant organ note seemed to come from everywhere as the two Cleaners stepped forward to raise their hands over the swords, which began to glow with a bright, steady radiance that merged with the glow coming from the stone in which they were housed. Then every Avatar raised his or her voice in a triumphant song in a language that had not been heard in thousands of years. The very air seemed to thrum with the energy the song of the Avatars unleashed. It ended after several minutes, but the light from the stone did not diminish. Edaemus stepped forward to remove the swords from the stone. They came away seated in scabbards of such magnificence that everyone stared in amazement.

"It is done!" the lord of the Avatars exalted. "Go now with our blessing."

"Will we meet again?" Harry asked. The Avatar laughed.

"Soon." He assured. "For now, return to your homes, and may peace be yours."

"And yours as well." A familiar voice said. They all turned to see Aedrus, clad now in the armor of an Avatar.

"Thanks in large part to you, my brother." Edaemus said soberly.

"I never lost faith." Aedrus assured him. He turned to the Halliwells. "I can send you home now." He said. "The rest of the world will be asleep for a few hours, during which time magic will slowly seep back into their consciousness. That should make your lives a teensy bit easier." He smirked. "You can stop trying to come up with new family emergencies every time you have to put the smack down on a demon."

"I'm not particularly keen on still having to deal with that," Piper remarked, "but you're definitely right about this making things a bit easier to explain."

"What about Wyatt?" Harry asked suddenly. "Have we done enough to change the future?"

"Yes." Gideon said with decision. Then he turned to Aedrus. "If the offer's still open I will take you up on it. If my knowledge can help the next generation then so be it."

"Then let it be done." Aedrus said with a broad smile. He made a casual gesture and a portal appeared before the Halliwells. They each cast one last look back at the smiling faces of the Avatars before stepping purposefully into the portal, which silently closed behind Harry, who was the last to enter.

Author's Note

Finally! Yeah I know it's been about six years, but real life and writer's block, not to mention several computer deaths got in the way. But I never abandoned this story and here's the latest chapter.


	15. A New Beginning

The Boy who Lived

By Jerle Shannara

Chapter 15: A New Beginning

"Will you stop that?" Darryl demanded in annoyance, glancing up from the magazine he was reading. Harry, who had been pacing back and forth for the better part of fifteen minutes, paid him no mind.

"This isn't easy for him." Sheila reminded him gently. "From what I heard you were just as bad if not worse."

"It really doesn't get any easier." Leo observed. "I imagine I'll be doing the same thing if and when Piper and I decide to have more kids." Darryl cast Harry another annoyed glance.

"Will you sit down?" he demanded. "You're making me nervous and I'm not even the one whose wife's expecting."

"That," Sheila observed mildly, "would be a miracle."

"Sit the hell down!" Darryl demanded of Harry once more. Cole, who had been standing by the waiting room door, came over and gently took Harry's arm.

"Come on." He said. "Let's go grab a bite before Darryl blows his top." He gave the other a smirk.

"But what-" Harry began.

"Come on." Cole repeated. "I'm sure they'll send someone when there's something to tell."

"Mind if I come?" Piper asked. "If I stick around here I'll likely take Harry's place and then Darryl will probably strangle both of us." She grinned. "Besides, I was thinking about grabbing another cup of coffee."

"Oh what the hell?" Darryl burst out suddenly, getting to his feet. The four of them headed for the cafeteria.

"Jesus!" Darryl exclaimed, staring at the two large chocolate muffins Harry had bought. "I swear my blood sugar just went up 20 units just looking at those." Cole grinned, stuffing a handful of French Fries into his mouth.

"Whoa." Piper said suddenly. "Get a load of that." She pointed at a nearby table, where sat three very familiar figures. Darryl glanced over and began to laugh. Cole gave him a questioning look, then saw where he was looking.

"Talk about irony." He said. Harry glanced over and his eyes widened.

"Now there's a sight I never thought I'd see." He remarked. Seated at the table was none other than Severus Snape, former Potions professor at Hogwarts. What had drawn the incredulous looks and Darryl's laughter however, was the sight of Snape's two companions, who were none other than Cho Chang and Kyle Brody. The fact that they were together at all was astonishing enough, but they appeared to be holding hands as they spoke quietly with Snape.

"I thought he died during the last battle with Voldemort." Piper remarked.

"We all did." Harry said. "But apparently Dumbledore's Phoenix got to him before Nagini's venom could finish him. He's apparently been in hiding ever since." He sighed. "I never knew how brave ne really was, to defy Voldemort and keep it hidden for so many years." He grinned. "I could have ended up being his son if things had worked out between him and my mom. Now that I know him better from his memories I realize it might not have been such a bad thing."

"The question is whether or not he would feel the same." Piper said.

"Methinks we won't have long to wait." Cole remarked. Sure enough, the three were making their way toward their table. Severus, they saw, looked apprehensive. Kyle and Cho gave him reassuring smiles.

"Would there be room for anymore at your table?" Severus asked, his voice very different from the way Harry remembered it. Gone was the cruel, sarcastic tone with which he had taught his classes.

"I think there might be room for three more," Darryl replied, "that's if your friends would care to join us." As it happened, they did.

"I hear you've been busy." Severus remarked to Harry once he and his companions were seated. "By all accounts we have you to thank for the fact that we no longer need to hide our existence." Harry blushed.

"I had help." He said.

"Be that as it may," Severus replied, "we all owe you." He paused. "I could not help overhearing a comment you made a few moments ago. I have had some years to consider certain choices I've made." He hesitated. "The greatest gift in honor, I think, would have been having you for a son." Harry's jaw dropped. So too did those of the others.

"Thanks." Harry finally managed.

"I've got a question." Darryl said, as much to ease them past a potentially awkward moment as out of a genuine desire for an answer. He glanced at Kyle before continuing. "When did you change your tune?" Kyle grinned.

"When she tracked me down and showed me their history." "It was impossible for me to hold onto hate once I'd learned the truth. It helped that the ones who really murdered my parents have finally been dealt with."

"He still won't give me an answer as to whether or not he'll join us though." Cho teased.

"That's a big decision." Kyle replied with a grin. "Besides, I'm not sure I'd make a good Avatar. I think maybe I'm just a bit too reckless."

"That can be outgrown with time." Severus assured. "Mr. Potter here has definitely had his moments of recklessness. I suspect it came from his father." To Harry's surprise, no bitterness infused Snape's voice at the mention of James Potter.

"I'll consider it." Kyle said to Cho. "I just want to be sure I'm really ready before I do it."

"What brought the three of you here anyway?" Cole asked.

"Did you think we'd miss the birth?" Kyle asked.

"Because if you did," Cho chimed in, "you'd have been wrong."

"She's resting now." Leo said a few minutes later. A young nurse had fetched Piper and the others from the cafeteria.

"Is everything all right?" Harry asked. Dr. Roberts smiled warmly.

"She and the babies are just fine." He paused. "It did help," he acknowledged, "that we've got a magical healer on staff now."

"When can we see them?" Phoebe asked.

"That depends." The doctor replied. "Paige is sleeping now. "As for the little ones-" He turned to display the bassinette he'd been holding. Within it, wrapped snuggly in blankets, were two very small people. The boy was a mirror image of Harry, minus the scar. The girl was almost identical save for her hair, which was closer to the color of Paige's. Harry couldn't take his eyes off them. Leo, for his part, wore an almost foolish grin on his face. Piper and Phoebe crowded forward but found their way barred by Severus.

"I think Mr. Potter should be first to hold them." He said. "They are his children after all." He paused, then with only a hint of sardonic amusement he added, "That is once he manages to turn his brain back on." Darryl laughed. Sensing Harry's condition, Dr. Roberts made is way over. Darryl came over and with surprising gentleness lifted first the girl, then te boy out of te bassinette and placed them in Harry's arms. Darryl noted the wonder in his friend's eyes and the shimmer of tears.

"Have you decided on names?" Cho asked.

"Yeah." Harry replied bemusedly.

"Well?" Severus asked. "Out with it, Potter." Harry seemed to give himself a mental shake.

"This is Lily." He said, holding the girl up for all to see. Phoebe and Piper approached and gazed down at their new niece.

"Does she have a middle name?" Phoebe asked.

"Luna." Harry said without hesitation. He and Paige had discussed this subject extensively over the past months. The name Lily had been obvious since Paige had wanted to honor arry's parents' sacrifice. Thhey had chosen the middle nae of Luna because of Harry's friend Luna Lovegood, whom Paige had met on several occasions and whom she found highly entertaining.

"Let me guess, "Leo said, "James?" He indicated the boy. Harry nodded.

"James Sirius." Harry hesitated. "And if we have anymore kids and we have another boy it'll be Albus Severus." Snape's eyes widened.

"Is that necessary?" he asked, trying for his old impatient tone and failing extravagantly.

"I believe it is." Harry replied. "After all, he'd be named after two of the bravest men I've ever known." Severus turned away quickly as though he was washing his hands of the matter in disgust. He was not confident, however, that the display was fooling anybody. Potter's decision had touched him and he suspected they all knew it. Indeed, Lieutenant Morris laughed.

"You're not fooling anybody." He said.

A few minutes later Harry stood beside the bed where Paige lay. She was quite obviously exhausted but a quiet joy seemed to emanate from her. Harry gazed down at her as he remembered all that had happened since he had come here.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Harry started at the sound of the voice. Glancing down he saw that Paige had awakened. She siled at is reaction. "Try not to have a heart attack or anything." She said. "That would be inconvenient." Harry laughed.

"I was just thinking about all we've been through." He paused. "And about how lucky I am to have you in my life."

"I've been thinking the same thing." Paige said. "Are my sisters going absolutely wild over the new arrivals yet?" Harry laughed.

"Yeah." He replied. "They've already started on me to hurry up and produce another one."

"Whoa whoa hold on a sec." Paige said. "Maybe in a few years I'll be willing to consider that but right at the moment-" She left it hanging. Harry grinned.

"That's pretty much what I said as well." He agreed. He leaned down to kiss his wife. "I'd better go." He said. "Dr. Roberts said I could be in here for a few minutes only." He grinned suddenly. "Just be glad it's not Madam Pomphrey from the Hogwarts hospital wing."

"Not yet, I suppose you mean?" came a very familiar voice.

"I spoke too soon it seems." Harry said with amusement. "How'd you get here? And why? Not that I'm not glad to see you but-"

"Did you think I was going to let anyone else tend to your wife?" Poppy Pomphrey demanded.

"I see what you mean." Paige muttered to Harry, her lips twitching with suppressed amusement. Then she made a shooing motion towards the door. "Get back out there before the others get any ideas. I'll be fine." Smiling in spite of himself, Harry turned and walked from the room.


End file.
